Unmanned Systems Technology 005 | Selex ES Falco UAV | Sense and avoid systems | RCV Engines DF70 | DSEI show report | Fuel cells | CUAV Expo, InterDrone and CUAV Show reports | SLAM

flying on a second monitor in the pilot’s view, which can be overlaid on the stored geographical area map. At any time the autopilot can be overridden to allow the pilot to directly operate all the control servos on the aircraft, although that option is rarely used. It is useful for test flights though, and otherwise is primarily for emergency situations. For pilot training, the trainee will normally fly a simulated craft in a synthetic environment; from within the confines of the GCS the difference will not be detectable. As per normal UAV practice, in autonomous mode the Falco flies between pre-assigned waypoints. In semi-autonomous mode the pilot might opt simply to steer the craft, leaving altitude and speed control to the autopilot, or assume those control functions as well. Communications antennas provide a radio link between the crew in the GCS and any air traffic controller into whose remit the craft might come. The crew will talk to ATC even if the craft is in fully autonomous mode, as it is still constantly monitored by them and they will be acting as the ‘eyes’ for ATC. Collision avoidance comes from a combination of an onboard transponder, or IFF, the comms radio link and the constant monitoring of the flight by the crew using the nose camera, the E/O- IR payload and radar. Since it has a transponder fitted and the GCS is in two-way radio communication with ATC the Falco can be treated as just another aircraft by ATC. In 2011 the Falco obtained a Permit to Fly from ENAC (the Italian CAA) to participate in the Sistema Monitoraggio Avanzato del Territorio – Fase 1 (SMAT F1) research programme. Through this, operating from the Cuneo-Levaldigi airfield in northern Italy and overflying populated territory, it demonstrated the capability to provide a suitable airborne monitoring system for civilian applications. If data transmission between it and the GCS is broken, the Falco will go into autonomous failure management mode, which ultimately will deploy the parachutes for an emergency landing. There are two parachutes on the Falco. In addition to the main centrally located one there is a small drogue parachute mounted on the tail, which is designed purely to decelerate the craft. It is deployed first in cases where the dynamic pressure would rip the wing off the aircraft following a main parachute deployment. Then, as airspeed falls, the main recovery parachute is brought into play. The design of this unique feature, which enhances the overall safety of the system, was driven by the experience held by Selex ES in the design of fast subsonic aerial targets, which normally deploy their parachute at speeds well in excess of 200 m/s.