New York Claims a Leading Role in UTM and Drone Technology

Part of NUAIR’s success is due to an wide variety of facilities available.  “We offer all kinds of capabilities, including indoor testing,” explains Hertzendorf.  “From there, the facility is being built out into a UAS Corridor, which will have ground-based detect and avoid radar.”  The corridor offers 50 miles of coverage from Rome to Syracuse.  Hertzendorf says that the corridor isn’t just about aircraft – it allows for testing of all of the technologies that surround UAS.  “It’s not just physical infrastructure, but a lot of technical work.  We can use the corridor to test parachute recovery systems, capabilities for BVLOS [flight beyond visual line of sight], communication links, new types of surveillance…   We can layer those into the corridor and see how these other systems perform.”The wide variety of technical solutions available is something that Hertzendorf says is one of the most interesting aspects  of the industry.  “I’ve been very impressed with the technical solutions,” he comments.  “People tend to see the drone as the primary entity.  The drone is just the ability to gather the data – but the magic that goes into flying an autonomous mission is much bigger.”

A test site like NUAIR, Hertzendorf points out, can help move those new technologies to market and ultimately to public adoption.  “It’s an aviation industry: that requires rigor and precision.  Applying the rigor of aviation risk mitigation to new technologies – that’s the path to pubic adoption.”

Another part of NUAIR’s reach is due to the range of cooperative agreements they hold with other agencies: and to support from the state governemnt.  NY Governor Cuomo has established a UAS Center of Excellence, a partnership between industry and academia in the drone industry.  Syracuse University’s Autonomous Systems Policy Insititute (ASPI) is also a partner.  And economic driver Genius NY is bringing new drone companies to the area to utilize the facilities and help develop the ecosystem.

NUAIR’s 2nd annual Symposium, scheduled for September 16 -18, will showcase all of the capabilities in the NY UAS Ecosystem.  “At this year’s symposium we’re going to showcase our UTM testing scenarios. We’ve got a great lineup of thought leaders, including from ASPI.  We want to bring in local municipalities and state agencies, so that they can see how we can help them use UAS, and how communities can benefit from the use of UAS.”