Ohio Set to Begin Beyond Visual Line of Sight Testing of UAS
Beyond visual line of sight testing of UAS is headed to the state of Ohio, with the Ohio Controlling Board approving the final $1.5 million of funding needed to build a ground-based sense and avoid radar system at the Springfield-Beckley Municipal Airport.
According to David Gallagher, a spokesperson for the Ohio/Indiana UAS Center, the sense and avoid radar system is “one-of-a-kind in general aviation airspace.”
“It gives the folks on the ground flying these vehicles an extra sense of safety, so we know who's flying at all levels,” Gallagher told the Columbus Business First.
Initial tests of the $5 million project will be conducted by the Air Force Research Laboratory, which picked the airport as the home of the system a few months ago. Eventually, universities and private companies will have the opportunity to work at the site as well.
“This can be a game changer for our region,” said Maurice “Mo” McDonald, the executive vice president of aerospace and defense for the Dayton Development Coalition.
McDonald continued, “we will be unique in the country to have that capability to fly. The future of that space is beyond the Air Force. The goal is to have industry and academic community do research and development.”
The hope is that tests of the system can begin next year.
