Uncrewed Systems Technology 043 l Auve Tech Iseauto taxi l Charging focus l Advanced Navigation Hydrus l UGVs insight l MVVS 116 l Windracers ULTRA l CES 2022 show report l ECUs focus I Distant Imagery

82 For such drops, the aircraft can be flown ‘low and slow’ to deliver cargo with very low kinetic energy directly at the point of destination. For most cargoes that means damage-free precision drops can be achieved without resorting to the complexity and cost of parachute systems. Airworthiness To gain permission for operations in the UK required the development of a robust safety case and operational procedures that had to be approved by the UK’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). The ULTRA has been designed to be capable of routine BVLOS operations in unsegregated airspace and above populated areas. Any large UAV operating BVLOS represents a potentially high risk, and very stringent airworthiness and associated safety standards for certified platforms are understandably mandated by the CAA. The Windracers team has worked very closely with the CAA, who have been extremely helpful and supportive in establishing a detailed safety case that outlines the qualification and health requirements for crew members, systems specifications and maintenance policies that demonstrate the initial and continued airworthiness of the UAS, and a set of operational procedures to guarantee that Windracers’ aviation activities will always take place in a safe and legal environment. The university team has more than a decade of experience in developing uncrewed aircraft, and was the first ‘non- defence’ organisation to be granted BVLOS April/May 2022 | Unmanned Systems Technology The Windracers platform has flown extensively in many locations around the UK. Test flying carrying real cargo to provide routine timetabled deliveries have been carried out over extended periods. These include the following campaigns. Isle of Wight The team was asked to undertake proving flights for the UK’s NHS as part of the Covid emergency in May 2020. This involved BVLOS flights from Lee-on-the-Solent airfield in Hampshire, England, to a small grass strip in the village of Binstead on the Isle of Wight carrying NHS supplies for the island’s St Mary’s Hospital. It was undertaken using a Temporary Danger Area between the mainland and the Isle of Wight. Low-risk ‘pathfinding’ for the operation was performed by flying a small foam electric platform equipped with avionics and command & control systems logically identical to those fitted to the ULTRA platform. This was extremely useful, as it allowed thorough testing of comms integrity and operational procedures before more risky flights with the ULTRA platform and cargo. This campaign generated a lot of valuable experience of operating from a busy airfield and testing equipment and procedures. For example, Lee-on-the-Solent hosts a coastguard helicopter unit, so the team frequently had to respond to urgent requests to divert and loiter at pre-planned locations for emergency helicopter operations. Furthermore, the airfield was surprisingly busy, with many general aviation craft and commercial flights in the circuit, and army helicopters transiting overhead, all while the ULTRA was also undertaking circuits and other operations. This was a valuable experience that allowed Windracers’ robust checklists, procedures, comms protocols and operational rules to be proven. Isles of Scilly A number of Innovate UK-funded flights were undertaken in partnership with the UK Royal Mail. An initial proving flight was undertaken from Land’s End airport in Cornwall, England, to St Mary’s airport on the Scilly Isles in December 2020. This was followed by a more extensive series of flights from Perranporth airfield, in Cornwall, to St Mary’s (more than 100 km) in April 2021. A daily delivery service, where a heavy load of Royal Mail packages was carried, was undertaken every day for several weeks. This more extensive programme of flights again showed the feasibility of long range, heavy cargo point-to-point UAV flights and interaction with Air Traffic Services including low altitude radar systems, commercial flights and unlicensed airfield air ground communication services. In particular, it demonstrated the ability to operate a scheduled service against fixed airspace time slots. Unlike the earlier Isle of Wight flights, the operational window The ULTRA’s proving flights ‘Hub and spoke’ logistics flights to the Orkneys and Shetland proved the ULTRA’s ability to operate in poor weather