A method for operating an, at least temporarily, unmanned aircraft or spacecraft wherein a flight procedure of the aircraft or spacecraft is carried out in controlled airspace using a previously cleared flight plan, wherein a C2 link is at least temporarily unavailable, and wherein at least one sensor device of the aircraft or spacecraft identifies a dangerous and/or emergency situation which makes it necessary to deviate from the cleared flight plan. To have available a method which makes it possible for an at least temporarily unmanned aircraft or spacecraft to react independently to particular dangerous and/or emergency situations and to avoid damaging events, a control device of the aircraft or spacecraft independently uses a wireless data link to a supervisory authority in order to agree to a changed flight plan containing at least one change.

Systems and methods for communicating data from off-vehicle data sources to a vehicle are provided. In one embodiment, a method for obtaining data for a vehicle comprises: initiating an information request from on-board a vehicle; formatting the information request onboard the vehicle into a data file format to generate a request file; performing a wireless file transfer of the request file from the vehicle to a data center, wherein the request file is transferred to a file system location; polling the file system location for creation of a response file corresponding to the request file; when the response file is detected within the file system location, retrieving the response file from the data center to the vehicle; and displaying at the vehicle information responsive to the information request from the response file. In some embodiments, the file system location is a file system location uniquely associated with the vehicle.

Autoland systems and processes for landing an aircraft without pilot intervention are described. In implementations, the autoland system includes a memory operable to store one or more modules and at least one processor coupled to the memory. The processor is operable to execute the one or more modules to identify a plurality of potential destinations for an aircraft. The processor can also calculate a merit for each potential destination identified, select a destination based upon the merit; receive terrain data and/or obstacle data, the including terrain characteristic(s) and/or obstacle characteristic(s); and create a route from a current position of the aircraft to an approach fix associated with the destination, the route accounting for the terrain characteristic(s) and/or obstacle characteristic(s). The processor can also cause the aircraft to traverse the route, and cause the aircraft to land at the destination without requiring pilot intervention.

Aspects relate to a system for flight plan generation of an electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. An exemplary system for flight plan generation includes a flight controller mounted on an eVTOL aircraft. The flight controller may be configured to receive a plurality of flight plan data and generate a flight plan for the aircraft as a function of the plurality of flight plan data.

A flight planning system for providing a flight planning tool comprises a memory device for storing flight information and one or more hardware processors configured to: receive a flight plan, access a calendar of events, determine events corresponding to dates associated with the flight plan, and provide a notification of the events on an interactive user interface.

In some examples, a system includes a memory configured to store a buffer storing volumetric weather data. The system also includes processing circuitry configured to retrieve weather radar data from the buffer by retrieving a first reflectivity value associated with a first cell of the buffer, where the first cell represents a first volume of space. The processing circuitry is further configured to determine an altitude of a first location based on a parameter and an altitude extent of the first volume of space. The altitude of the first location is lower than an altitude of a centroid of the first volume of space. The processing circuitry is also configured to associate the first reflectivity value with the first location.

The present disclosure generally pertains to systems and methods for detecting surface conditions using multiple images of different polarizations. A system in accordance with the present disclosure captures images having different polarizations and compares the images to evaluate surface conditions of an area, such as a runway, landing pad, roadway, or taxiway on which a vehicle is expected to land or otherwise travel. In some cases, a surface hazard, such as water, ice, or snow covering a surface of the area, may be detected and identified. Information indicative of the surface conditions may be used to make control decisions for operation of the vehicle.

A system to assess the current, or future workload of a pilot and automatically providing annunciation when needed to the pilot, as well as to resources that support the pilot. The system may automatically, and without pilot involvement, assess the workload for the pilot based on incoming events and abnormal scenarios. The predicted incoming events may be related to operation data, such as navigation information, weather, traffic avoidance, and so on. The system may also detect abnormal scenarios, such as engine warnings, fuel or other aircraft issues. The system may determine whether the predicted incoming events or the abnormal scenario satisfies one or more pre-defined criteria. Based on the event satisfying one or more criteria, the system may output an annunciation to either the pilot, resources that support the pilot, such as an additional pilot and air traffic control (ATC).

An aircraft landing assist apparatus includes an image obtaining unit, a shape obtaining unit, a measuring unit, and a calculating unit. The image obtaining unit is configured to obtain an image of a surrounding region of a landing point on which an aircraft is to land. The shape obtaining unit is configured to obtain a shape of the surrounding region of the landing point on the basis of the obtained image. The measuring unit is configured to measure an above-air wind direction and an above-air wind velocity. The calculating unit is configured to calculate a landing-point wind direction and a landing-point wind velocity on the basis of the obtained shape of the surrounding region of the landing point, the measured above-air wind direction, and the measured above-air wind velocity.

Improved mechanisms for collecting information from a diverse suite of sensors and systems, calculating the current precipitation, atmospheric water vapor, atmospheric liquid water content, or precipitable water and other atmospheric-based phenomena, for example presence and intensity of fog, based upon these sensor readings, predicting future precipitation and atmospheric-based phenomena, and estimating effects of the atmospheric-based phenomena on visibility, for example by calculating runway visible range (RVR) estimates and forecasts based on the atmospheric-based phenomena.