The FAA has made steady progress on regulations for emerging technologies like small drones, such as Part 107, and powered-lift aircraft, such as the 2024 special federal aviation regulation outlining pilot training and early operational requirements for the category.
Rules for larger uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS) remain nebulous. But that could soon change.
NASA on Wednesday awarded a fresh Small Business Innovation and Research (SBIR) Phase III contract to Reliable Robotics, the developer of the Reliable Autonomy System (RAS) for a range of civil and military platforms. Under the agreement, Reliable will conduct a series of operational demonstration flights at and near airports using its automated Cessna 208B Grand Caravan—its primary testbed.
A summary of the flight data will be provided to NASA, FAA, and standards development organizations (SDOs) to inform their development of Minimum Operational Performance Standards (MOPS), Minimum Aviation System Performance Standards (MASPS), and other key provisions for large UAS, Reliable said.
“This testing campaign comes at a unique moment in time, when safety-enhancing aircraft autonomy is rapidly nearing FAA certification and entry into service for regional air cargo and military use cases,” said Robert Rose, co-founder and CEO of Reliable, in a statement. “Efforts like this are how we continue to advance the necessary public policy ecosystem.”
Reliable said it will demonstrate regional air cargo operations in an airport terminal area, assessing “maneuvers, procedures, air traffic control interactions, and implications of visual clearances for remotely piloted operations.” It will perform multiple data collection flights during which it will throw the aircraft a few curveballs, such as simulated loss of command and control (C2) links and degraded or denied GPS. Detect and avoid (DAA) maneuvers will be performed under the eye of visual observers.
“While these contingencies are unlikely, this partnership will advance specific operational mitigations,” Reliable said.
A final demonstration flight for NASA, the company said, will have no onboard pilot and be “operated in accordance with Reliable’s prior FAA authorizations,” without contingency management procedures. The regulator previously signed off on an uncrewed Caravan flight and funded a weeklong series of simulations and flight tests to study UAS airspace integration in 2023.
Autonomous Integration
In August, the U.S. Air Force awarded Reliable a $17.4 million contract that the company said includes the purchase and eventual deployment of its RAS in real-world, Indo-Pacific operations aboard the Caravan. The agreement represents a major vote of confidence in the technology’s readiness. But it isn’t quite ready for commercial operations in controlled U.S. airspace.
Reliable claims the RAS—designed to prevent common accidents such as controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) and loss of control in flight (LOC-I)—provides the same safety and reliability as fully crewed flight.
The system is FAA-certifiable and platform-agnostic, accommodating aircraft with payload up to 3,000 pounds. It handles all phases of flight—from taxi, takeoff, en route, and landing—by automating control surfaces and engine controls.
Key to the RAS is its DAA system, which comprises a radar, ADS-B In transponder, traffic display for the remote pilot, and airborne processing unit running ACAS-X—a planned improvement on the TCAS II alert system. A remote supervisor can use voice and data links to communicate with ATC and other pilots or take control of the aircraft when needed.
Reliable has received plenty of help developing the technology. The Air Force, for example, in 2024 awarded it a multiyear agreement to study the automation of airlift and aerial refueling aircraft. The company devised a blueprint to automate the KC-135 Stratotanker under a previous contract.
At the same time, organizations like NASA are aiding Reliable’s certification efforts.
In 2023, for example, Reliable and the space agency jointly conducted testing that gauged the viability of existing primary surveillance radar (PSR) systems to detect and avoid aircraft. The FAA as part of that project gave Reliable limited access to PSR data, which the company said could be used for future DAA systems.
Later, NASA researchers observed RAS-equipped Caravan and Cessna 172 Skyhawk flights in California, collecting large amounts of PSR and other data.
In August, the company received a Space Act Agreement to study the integration of large UAS for cargo and passenger transport. It will comprise three major autonomy simulations—DAA with humans in the loop, loss of C2 link, and “interactions” as aircraft enter and depart airports.
Reliable also works closely with the FAA, which in 2023 signed off on its project specific certification plans. The regulator has defined a means of compliance and other requirements for the company’s targeted Part 23 supplemental type certification. It has also accepted some system specific certification plans, such as for the RAS navigation system.
In fact, the FAA is already conducting testing similar to that Reliable is planning with NASA. In November 2024, the agency awarded it a contract for DAA data collection flights in and around airports in partnership with the Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership, one of its UAS test sites. A Reliable spokesperson told FLYING the campaign is underway.
The first commercial integration of the RAS could be on Caravans flying for Reliable Airlines—the company’s Part 135 subsidiary that comprises part of FedEx’s feeder network. Through a collaboration with Textron Aviation, the technology could ultimately appear on any of the more than 3,000 Caravans the manufacturer has delivered.
