Guest Posted March 30, 2018 Share Posted March 30, 2018 US Navy remotely lands F/A-18 Super Hornet on carrier deck 30 March, 2018 SOURCE: FlightGlobal.com BY: Garrett Reim Los Angeles Naval officers aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln demonstrated for the first time the ability to remotely take control of an aircraft and land it on an aircraft carrier’s deck. Using the ATARI system, or aircraft terminal approach remote inceptor, landing signal officers demonstrated remote piloting of the F/A-18E Super Hornet while conducting carrier qualifications and flight testing aboard the Abraham Lincoln in March. The officers also demonstrated touch-and-go manoeuvres with the system. The ATARI technology was developed at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland by Naval Air Systems Command. It was initially tested on a Learjet in 2016, performing shore-based low approaches. An undisclosed number of F/A-18s were fitted with the technology in 2017. The system was deemed ready for trials at sea by the "Salty Dogs" of Air test and Evaluation Squadron 23. "There was some nervousness because the sea state was so bad," said Lt John Marino, a carrier suitability pilot from the "Salty Dogs" and the first pilot to land on a flight deck using ATARI. "Back on the airfield, testing was benign." Image courtesy of US Navy The system demonstrated a potential method for recovering an unmanned aerial vehicle by using the landing signal officer’s ability to observe and fix glideslope and lineup errors, said the US Navy. It is not intended to be a primary method for recovering manned aircraft, but provides a relatively inexpensive backup system. During testing, the ATARI system operators controlled an F/A-18 aircraft using a joystick, while a safety pilot sat in the cockpit as backup. The technology is capable of taking over an aircraft from up to five miles away. Testing was conducted over the course of two days in conjunction with carrier qualifications. ATARI is not scheduled for fleet-wide implementation as the system’s engineers plan to analyze the data collected aboard Abraham Lincoln and make adjustments for further at-sea testing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DEFCON Posted March 30, 2018 Share Posted March 30, 2018 Pilots serving as systems managers landing on a carrier in a poor sea state ... wow! Pilots, especially the military & cargo types, are going to become an endangered species soon enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 30, 2018 Share Posted March 30, 2018 1 hour ago, DEFCON said: Pilots serving as systems managers landing on a carrier in a poor sea state ... wow! Pilots, especially the military & cargo types, are going to become an endangered species soon enough. Just think though, if they can take control of the aircraft 5 miles out and land it on the pitching deck of a carrier, you do have to wonder if that capability could be transferred to passenger aircraft landing at normal airports. Another reason why we might see a one man cockpit but hopefully not soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vanishing point Posted March 30, 2018 Share Posted March 30, 2018 Of course it could. Better question is if the flying public will accept it.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 30, 2018 Share Posted March 30, 2018 53 minutes ago, vanishing point said: Of course it could. Better question is if the flying public will accept it.... I suspect if the price is right the flying public will accept almost anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kip Powick Posted March 30, 2018 Share Posted March 30, 2018 One pilot and the faithful dog. It will come to pass Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
av8tor Posted March 30, 2018 Share Posted March 30, 2018 59 minutes ago, vanishing point said: Of course it could. Better question is if the flying public will accept it.... I expect that they will .... and very soon. They already accept remotely controlled trains and autonomously driven automobiles are just around the corner (in terms of legality and availability), robots are everywhere from surgical rooms to assembly lines. It (remotely controlled airliners) will begin with single pilot ops and then ultimately complete autonomy. Not in my lifetime I suspect, but most likely in my grandchildren's lifetime. 13 minutes ago, Malcolm said: I suspect if the price is right the flying public will accept almost anything. Absolutely. People place a high value on life but when it's their own money they often come up with some strange rationalizations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DEFCON Posted March 30, 2018 Share Posted March 30, 2018 The growing shortage of qualified pilots may be the result of a plan that was initiated decades ago? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moon The Loon Posted March 30, 2018 Share Posted March 30, 2018 22 minutes ago, Kip Powick said: One pilot and the faithful dog. It will come to pass What wuzzit radio announcers used to say just before going to commercial? "Don't touch that dial!" WOOF! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaydee Posted April 2, 2018 Share Posted April 2, 2018 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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