Successful Use of an Autonomous Unmanned Aircraft

Aeronautics and the world of aviation innovation remain one of the most intriguing engineering disciplines. Obviously, Seattle — home to Boeing and many other airplane manufacturers — is a great place to be for aviation engineers. The growth of autonomous unmanned aircraft is yet another example of innovative engineers raising the bar for the industry as a whole.

Let’s take a closer look at aviation engineering and its use for unmanned aircraft.

Integrating Drones into Today’s Civil Air Space

Introducing unmanned aircraft into the current modern civil air space is one of the biggest remaining challenges for aviation researchers. In fact, a new report from the National Research Council notes key barriers to drone integration while recommending a plan of action to solve any pressing issues.

John-Paul Clarke, associate professor of aerospace engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology, co-chaired the NRC committee that wrote the report. “There is little doubt that over the long run the potential benefits of advanced unmanned aircraft and other increasingly autonomous systems to civil aviation will indeed be great, but there should be equally little doubt that getting there while maintaining the safety and efficiency of the nation’s civil aviation system will be no easy matter,” said Clarke.

Unmanned Aircraft Development on the Increase

The work of Clarke’s research team is becoming more important, as more and more drones enter the public airspace. Applications for these unmanned aircraft include crop dusting, traffic monitoring, and even fighting forest fires. One of the major technical barriers involved in air traffic control with drones is predicting their flight paths based on the drone’s autonomous reactions to current conditions.

Other potential issues involve regulatory and certification policies for unmanned aircraft, in addition to social considerations, like privacy and safety concerns. Still, the world of autonomous unmanned aircraft provides another growing arena for interested engineers to leverage their creativity and intellect.

If the exciting world of aviation engineering inspires you to take your career to a higher level, talk to the experts at The Talley Group. As one of the top engineering staffing agencies in the Northwest, they remain a great source of Seattle engineering jobs. Schedule some time with them today!