General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) has begun demonstration flights of the Guardian UAS on Iki Island in Japan, the company announced on 9 May.
Intended to promote the civil and scientific applications of the UAS, the demonstration flights will consist of approximately ten five-hour sorties over a three week period, out of Iki Airport.
During the flights, the UAS will collect data for scientific research that will be shared across multiple government agencies. The sensor data will also be provided to scientific research institutions and flight data will be given to airspace management organisations to help establish procedures for using unmanned systems in national and international civil airspace.
The Guardian’s sensors include a long-range maritime surface-search radar, stabilised optical and infrared video cameras and an active collision-avoidance system, which includes a short range air-to-air radar. The configuration is similar to the one operated by the US Department of Homeland Security over the maritime approaches to the US.
The Guardian system will demonstrate various missions, including meteorological, disaster-relief and oceanic observations; marine accidents and rescue support, and air space management and support of communications.
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