The Northern Plains UAS Test Site made its inaugural unmanned aerial system (UAS) flight on Thursday as U.S. Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) and local, state and federal officials looked on.
Hoeven has actively worked to make North Dakota the northern hub of UAS technology and research and development, with the Northern Plains UAS Test Site and the Grand Forks Grand Sky Technology Park playing key roles.
General Atomics, the manufacturer of the Predator and Reaper unmanned aircraft, undertook a test flight on Thursday at the site that required ground observers and a manned chase plane.
Beyond-line-of-sight operability and the ability to fly at higher altitudes without ground observers, however, will be required to train up to 60 flight crews at the Northern Plains UAS Test Site each year. Hoeven has advocated for the FAA to waive operational limitations on UAS flights when safe operation can be demonstrated beyond established rules in situations like beyond-line-of site operability and high altitude flights without ground observers.
“We are working to get authorizations to fly unmanned aircraft beyond the line of sight of the operator, which is essential to companies like General Atomics and others that are trying to train new pilots and develop new technologies” Hoeven said. “To get that approval, I’ve spoken with FAA Administrator Michael Huerta to allow for beyond-line-of-sight operations above 10,000 feet.”
The test site’s ability to use the advanced DASR-11 digital radar system at Grand Forks Air Force Base will put the test site in a strong position to earn authorization, Hoeven added.
“We worked hard to secure funding for the DASR-11 radar,” Hoeven said. “It will be valuable not only to General Atomics but also other companies developing UAS technologies. It will also give North Dakota’s test site a competitive edge in contending for a new UAS air wing the Air Force is planning to establish somewhere in the country.”
Hoeven also recently traveled to California to meet with leaders of the NASA Ames Research Center to make the case for developing NASA’s unmanned traffic management (UTM) system at the Northern Plains UAS Test Site.
“NASA is developing the traffic management system to fly UAS in the national airspace,” Hoeven said. “The Northern Plains Test Site and Grand Sky Technology Park have strong infrastructure in place and the right expertise to help NASA do it. That’s the partnership we’re working to build and we believe it is important to developing our nation’s UAS capabilities and ensuring that we do so safely.”
As a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Hoeven also successfully included a provision in the FAA reauthorization extension to extend the nation’s UAS test sites, including the Northern Plains UAS Test Site, through September 2019.