Successful flight of a self-driving transport platform from “Bell”

Bell Textron Corporation has announced the successful flyby of the Bell APT 70 autonomous transport platform, as part of a joint flight show with NASA.

Bell was selected to participate in the 2018 integration and operational introduction event with NASA systems, which includes a series of aviation demos focusing on different types of UAV systems and their flight environments.

The aim of the OSI offer is to carry out an out-of-line mission in an urban environment while moving into and out of Class B airspace, similar to the missions of future commercial aviation.

The results of the mission will be used to evaluate and demonstrate “know and avoid” and “command and control” techniques for use in future operations that are validated within controlled and out-of-control airspaces. The data collected during the presentation will be used to advance the future development of metrics and benchmarks for FAA approval.

It is envisioned that, in the future, the APT 70 when in operation will be able to provide efficient, fast and reliable operations to carry payloads weighing up to 70 pounds. The APT 70 is estimated to be able to travel three times faster than road transport vehicles.

The vehicle is characterized by being able to fly autonomously, automatically fly through a programmed flight path, and handle a range of emergency missions. Potential uses of the APT 70 include medical deliveries, logistics, sea deliveries, humanitarian relief operations and many more