Merlin Advances Toward Autonomous Flight Tech STC with Simulator

The manufacturer says the technology is designed to accelerate its path to supplemental type certification with regulators in the U.S. and New Zealand.

Jack Daleo

Wednesday, April 10, 2024 at 04:18 PM ET

Verified

Merlin’s Certification System Bench will allow it to perform ground tests of its autonomous flight system from its Boston headquarters. [Courtesy: Merlin Labs]

Key Takeaways:

Merlin Labs has developed a "Certification System Bench," a flight test simulator, to accelerate the path to a Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) for its Merlin Pilot autonomous flight system.
This simulator enables extensive ground testing of Merlin Pilot's certifiable software and hardware, reducing the need for physical flight tests and mitigating operational challenges like weather.
Merlin is seeking an STC from New Zealand's Civil Aviation Authority (with concurrent FAA validation) for its platform-agnostic Merlin Pilot system, aiming to supplement pilot workloads and address the ongoing pilot shortage.
The company has a strong record of achievements, including previous certifications and successful flight trials with the FAA and the U.S. Air Force on various aircraft types.

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Autonomous flight systems provider Merlin Labs is stepping up its quest for a supplemental type certificate (STC).

The company on Wednesday announced it completed the build of its Certification System Bench, a flight test simulator designed to speed its path to an STC. The simulator contains the company’s certifiable software and hardware components and is located at its Boston headquarters.