Ed Sayadian: Exelis to Back 4 FAA UAS Research, Test Sites

Exelis has signed an agreement with four Federal Aviation Administration-designated test facilities to study the integration of unmanned aircraft systems into U.S. civilian airspace.

The sites will use Exelis’ Symphony RangeVue sense-and-avoid tool for operators and test personnel to access real-time and historical aircraft surveillance data via a Web platform, Exelis said Tuesday.

Symphony RangeVue is designed to function as either a command center support and post-event analysis resource or a sense-and-avoid tool in the field, Exelis said.

“The test sites receive air traffic control-quality surveillance data, increasing safety and enabling beyond-line-of-site operations, while Exelis gains critical product feedback which will be used to shape and validate our service offerings,” said Ed Sayadian, vice president of civil and aerospace systems at Exelis.

Test sites covered under the agreement include:

• Griffiss International Airport in New York
• University of Alaska at Fairbanks
• University of North Dakota
• Virginia Tech