Systems and methods for communicating aircraft sensory cues are provided. A method can include obtaining aerial vehicle data and facility data for an aerial portion of a multi-modal transportation service. The method can include determining a plurality of sensory cues indicative of information for the aerial portion of the transportation service such as a safe path across a landing pad of the facility, a seating assignment for a passenger, etc. The method can include communicating sensory data indicative of the plurality of sensory cues to at least one of a facility computing system associated with the facility or an aerial computing system associated with the at least one aerial vehicle. The facility computing system and/or aerial computing system can output the sensory cue(s) to at least one passenger or operator of the aerial portion of the multi-modal transportation service in, for example, the facility's landing area.

This application discloses a beacon for guiding landing of an unmanned aerial vehicle. The beacon includes at least three levels of patterns: one first-level pattern and at least one second-level pattern, where the at least one second-level pattern is superposed above the first-level pattern, and an area of the second-level pattern is less than that of the first-level pattern.

Methods, devices, and systems of various embodiments are disclosed for managing an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) charging station having a docking terminal. In various embodiments, a priority of a first UAV and a second UAV may be determined for using the docking terminal when a docking request is received from the second UAV while the first UAV occupies the docking terminal. In some embodiments, the priorities of the first and second UAVs may be based on an available power level of each of the first and second UAVs. The first UAV may be instructed to undock from the docking terminal in response to determining that the second UAV has a higher priority.

Systems and methods for providing trajectory amendments are provided. In one embodiment, a computing system can identify a plurality of aircraft operators. The system can provide for display in a user interface, to one or more computing devices of each of the plurality of aircraft operators, a first set of data identifying an arrival time slot associated with a landing area. The system can receive one or more second sets of data indicating that one or more of the aircraft operators has selected the arrival time slot. The system can select a first aircraft operator of the one or more aircraft operators for the arrival time slot. The system can provide, to a computing device of the first aircraft operator, an output indicating that the first operator has been selected for the arrival time slot.

Systems and methods for providing trajectory amendments are provided. In one embodiment, a computing system can identify a plurality of aircraft operators. The system can provide for display in a user interface, to one or more computing devices of each of the plurality of aircraft operators, a first set of data identifying an arrival time slot associated with a landing area. The system can receive one or more second sets of data indicating that one or more of the aircraft operators has selected the arrival time slot. The system can select a first aircraft operator of the one or more aircraft operators for the arrival time slot. The system can provide, to a computing device of the first aircraft operator, an output indicating that the first operator has been selected for the arrival time slot.

A registration authority (RA) server registers unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and their owners/operators (O/O). A UAV is maintained in a flight lock state until a flight plan request from the O/O is approved by the RA, which sends an key-signed approval to unlock the UAV's flight lock. The RA server evaluates a UAV's proposed flight plan based on the attributes of the O/O and UAV, the location and time of the requested flight plan, and a set of flight rules and exclusion zones that are developed in view of privacy assurance, security assurance, flight safety assurance, and ground safety assurance. The flight plan key-signed approval supplied to the UAV by the RA server specifies an inclusion zone that corresponds to a flight plan trajectory to be followed. Once in flight, the UAV maintains real-time knowledge of its position and time to ensure its flight remains within the approved inclusion zone.

Systems and methods of the present invention are provided to generate a plurality of flight trajectories that do not conflict with other aircraft in a local area. Interventions by an air traffic control system help prevent collisions between aircraft, but these interventions can also cause an aircraft to substantially deviate from the pilot's intended flight trajectory, which burns fuels, wastes time, etc. Systems and methods of the present invention can assign a standard avoidance interval to other aircraft in the area such that a pilot's aircraft does not receive an intervention by an air traffic control system. Systems and methods of the present invention also generate a plurality of conflict-free flight trajectories such that a pilot or an automated system may select the most desirable flight trajectory for fuel efficiency, speed, and other operational considerations, etc.

Embodiments of the present invention provide an alternative distributed airborne transportation system. In some embodiments, a method for distributed airborne transportation includes: providing an airborne vehicle with a wing and a wing span, having capacity to carry one or more of passengers or cargo; landing of the airborne vehicle near one or more of passengers or cargo and loading at least one of passengers or cargo; taking-off and determining a flight direction for the airborne vehicle; locating at least one other airborne vehicle, which has substantially the same flight direction; and joining at least one other airborne vehicle in flight formation and forming a fleet, in which airborne vehicles fly with the same speed and direction and in which adjacent airborne vehicles are separated by distance of less than 100 wing spans.

Systems, methods and computer-storage media are provided for a touch-screen interface panel (TSIP) of an aircraft. The TSIP may communicate with one or more aircraft systems. In other words, the TSIP is configured to display information of one or more aircraft systems. For example, the TSIP may receive a request for weather information. In response, the TSIP receives weather information from a weather system and displays it via the TSIP screen. In another example, the TSIP may display warnings or alerts that are detected by an aircraft warning system, maintenance system, or the like. Furthermore, information that may have typically been looked up physically or called in to a tower may now be provided via the TSIP by the interfacing of the TSIP with the systems maintaining the information. For example, a charts database may communicate with the TSIP and the information thereof displayed via the TSIP.

A method, computing system and computer program product are provided to monitor compliance with a non-transgression zone between aircraft approach corridors, thereby facilitating simultaneous instrument approaches. In the context of a method, a predicted path of an aircraft is determined during a flight based upon at least a representation of a roll angle of the aircraft and a cross-track component of the velocity of the aircraft. The method also includes identifying an instance in which the predicted path of the aircraft during the flight intersects a non-transgression zone. The method further includes causing an alert to be issued in the instance in which the predicted path of the aircraft during the flight intersects the non-transgression zone.