A major breakthrough in aviation software has not only broken a world record but could also save lives.
Skyryse (USA) has achieved the first automated autorotation landing by rotorcraft, something that could drastically reduce the number of fatalities in aircraft crashes.
The technology has created a fully automated emergency landing procedure that takes the pressure off the pilot to land an aircraft safely when the engines fail.
The team at @Skyryse have developed the first self-landing helicopter 😲 pic.twitter.com/sd50BV9a4V
— Guinness World Records (@GWR) December 15, 2023
Explaining the procedure, pilots from the Los Angeles-based company said when a helicopter’s engine fails, the pilot must perform a complex series of actions to land safely on the ground.
The process is called autorotation and it’s in four parts:
- Entry (made up of three different manoeuvres which must be performed within two seconds of the engine failing)
- Glide (to maintain air speed through small adjustments)
- Flare (pulling the front of the helicopter up to slow it down before levelling it)
- Landing (which requires a number of manoeuvres to be performed at the same time)
If a pilot doesn’t perform these moves correctly and quickly enough, the helicopter’s blades could come to an abrupt halt, causing it to fall out of the sky.
But Skyryse’s innovative new technology does all of that automatically.
The company’s main goal in achieving this record was to address the high number of fatalities in aviation accidents.
A staggering number of lives are lost in accidents like this every year.
But by introducing this new technology, Skyryse hopes to make emergency procedures more manageable and greatly reduce the number of tragedies.
Dr Mark Groden, Founder and CEO of Skyryse, said: "Every year, more than 400 people lose their lives in general aviation accidents just in the United States alone. Fully automated autorotation is just one example of how our technology will bring a commercial grade of safety and beyond to general aviation."
A huge project like this doesn’t come without its difficulties and the Skyryse team faced many challenges while developing the fully automated autorotation feature.
Integrating the system with a reimagined Human Machine Interface (HMI) to seamlessly work with the pilot during emergencies required meticulous engineering.
The team had to overcome the intricacies of helicopter engine failure and put their technology through rigorous testing – and the results were groundbreaking.
Even the pilots testing it out were left in awe as they saw a potentially harrowing situation turn into a fully automated controlled descent.
Skyryse will unveil the first production helicopter featuring this technology next year.
This automated landing is one of dozens of first-of-their-kind safety features that will come as standard on all helicopters and aeroplanes equipped with Skyryse technology.
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