UAS in the NAS

Successful introduction of unmanned aerial systems into the National Airspace System is a conversation that has been long running and continues to be a hot topic as large corporations such as Amazon and Walmart are pushing for civil and commercial UAS use. The question on how to safely incorporate unmanned aerial systems into the NAS is hampered by the inherent distrust the US population has for how the unmanned aerial systems will be operated. Considerations such as privacy continue to be a hot button point as more and more citizens are coming forward with stories of observing UAS hovering over their backyards potentially observing their children at play or teenage children sunbathing. This is a topic that will continue to be pressed as new regulations for usage and penalties for misusage are developed.

            So the question on how to maintain separation and how to monitor separation is the focus of this paper. In any type of aircraft separation, be it manned or unmanned, situational awareness is the key to maintaining separation (Endsley & Jones, 2004). Whether this is achieved by avenues such as “see and avoid” where the pilot is largely responsible for separating him or herself from other aircraft, traffic calls being given by air traffic controllers where the pilot may not be able to see the other aircraft due to distance and direction, or by the use of TCAS where the pilot can be alerted to the proximity of other aircraft they may or may not be able to see some level of situational awareness is key to achieving separation (Tvaryanas, 2006).

            Currently a sense and avoid system has been tested by General Atomics to enable UAS to “sense and avoid” other aircraft. The system has been tested on Predator and Reaper UAV’s and has been developed as a comprehensive system that encompasses a radar, transponder, and a traffic alert system that enables the aircraft to detect other types of aircraft that it might encounter (Govers III, 2013). This system gives the ground control station the ability to know where other aircraft are in proximity to the UAS and even if the manned aircraft is not equipped with a transponder the radar acts as a redundancy for the UAS to “see” the other aircraft. This system has been developed for larger UAS but similar systems are being designed with consideration to varying sizes of UAS. The most comprehensive part of the system is the ability of the UAS to alert air traffic control of issues it may be experiencing through broadcasting on ATC emergency frequencies. These broadcasts would consist of area, direction, speed, and elevation data. This information is valuable as the air traffic controller will be able to alert manned aircraft of the UAS in the airspace and give them the capability to avoid and incident (Kongsberg, 2015).

References 

Endsley, M., & Jones, D. (2004). Designing for Situation Awareness. Boca Raton: CRC Press.

Govers III, F. (2013, December 18). Gizmag. Retrieved from Gizmag.com: http://www.gizmag.com/uav-sense-avoid-test-general-atomics/30184/

Kongsberg. (2015, February 10). Retrieved from Kongsberg Maritime AS: http://www.km.kongsberg.com/ks/web/nokbg0240.nsf/AllWeb/7F3D0D6DAC990552C12574B1002E8091?OpenDocument

Tvaryanas, A. (2006). Human Factors Considerations in Migration of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Operator Control. Brooks City, TX: United States Air Force.