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AeroVironment expands flight autonomy presence with Planck Aerosystems acquisition

18th August 2022 - 14:00 GMT | by Shephard News Team

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AVEM tethered UAV. (Photo: Planck Aerosystems)

The acquisition of Planck Aerosystems gives AeroVironment more capabilities in UAV guidance and navigation, autonomy and AI.

AeroVironment on 17 August announced the acquisition of UAV navigation solutions provider Planck Aerosystems for an undisclosed sum.

‘The acquisition will significantly accelerate AeroVironment’s development of advanced autonomy capabilities,’ the company claimed.

San Diego-based Planck specialises in UAV guidance and navigation, autonomy and AI. It will operate within AeroVironment’s Medium Unmanned Aircraft Systems business segment.

Flight autonomy solutions such as the Autonomous Control Engine from Planck will be integrated into AeroVironment platforms such as the Puma family, to enable safe, autonomous take-off and landing from moving platforms on land or at sea in GPS-denied environments.

Planck also produces a fully integrated mobile tethered sensor platform called AVEM that is designed for persistent autonomous operation from moving vehicles and vessels in any environment.

‘This transaction accelerates AeroVironment’s innovation in flight autonomy, increasing the effectiveness of our solutions in contested environments and reducing the cognitive load of operators,‘ said Wahid Nawabi, AeroVironment chairman, president and CEO.

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