Automated Grand Caravan Demos Cargo Flights in New Mexico

Reliable Robotics has completed a round autonomous flight trials with its converted Cessna 208B Grand Caravan at the main commercial airport in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The operations, which were concluded on October 21, were part of the U.S. government-backed eVTOL Integration Pilot Program (eIPP).

As one of the selected eIPP locations, the City of Albuquerque partnered with Reliable Robotics to demonstrate how uncrewed aircraft could be used for cargo deliveries to and from smaller rural communities. The two-day flight test campaign was conducted from Albuquerque International Sunport (KABQ), where there is a busy mix of commercial airline and military traffic in Class C airspace.

The Grand Caravan is fitted with the company’s Reliable Autonomy System (RAS) which it said is enabled for full gate-to-gate automated operations. Under the control of a remote pilot based more than 700 miles away at the company’s headquarters in Mountain View, California, the aircraft taxied, took off and landed in fully automated mode. Once in the air, an onboard safety pilot supervised the flight and communicated with air traffic controllers.

According to Reliable Robotics, the RAS technology can be applied to any aircraft and integrates with existing infrastructure without the need to make changes to how the U.S. National Airspace System functions. The FAA has accepted the company’s plan for certifying the system, including a means of compliance for autopilot engagement.

Earlier this week, the company announced it has raised $115 million in new capital, which took the total amount generated by its Series D funding round to $275 million. The new capital includes a $25 million load from Silicon Valley Bank and total equity funding now totals more than $380 million.