Source: GE
General Electric (GE) is the name on the lips of millions when it comes to appliances in the home. But soon it may be the name on our lips when it comes to devices in the air, with the launch of their new company AiRXOS announced Thursday.
The multinational conglomerate in fact has a piece of many market pies – healthcare, power, renewables, digital, lighting, oil and gas to name a few.
While the company has been reported to be struggling to meet credit obligations, GE are now capitalising on their experience in the aviation and transport sectors to nab a piece of the increasing commercial drone market.
This won’t be done by building drones though. Instead, GE are looking to become an integral part of the drone ecosystem by assisting the integration of unmanned air systems (UAS) and unmanned ground systems (UGS) safely and efficiently into airspace and on the ground.
AiRXOS is in fact already working with three government and first nation authorities in the USA as part of the UAS IPP. Partnering with The City of San Diego, the City of Memphis, and the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, the company’s role is to help develop unmanned traffic management (UTM) infrastructures and operations, as well as certification/waiver automation that will speed up the unmanned transportation ecosystem.
Recognising the quickly growing market need for advanced drone traffic management systems, Kenneth Stewart, General Manager, AiRXOS said, “These transformative, collaborative efforts between states, industry and government will be the foundation for realizing the power of UAS advanced operations.”
What AiRXOS offers is the infrastructure and advanced operations necessary to unlock the emerging markets of autonomous flight - @generalelectric Click To Tweet
GE already has been using drones and drone technology for some time, what AiRXOS offers is the infrastructure and advanced operations necessary to unlock the emerging markets of autonomous flight. We look forward to working closely with our Ohio, New York, San Diego, Memphis, and Choctaw Nation partners on realizing the potential of the UAV vision.”
AiRXOS has also formed partnerships in three other collaborative efforts to accelerate UTM and other advanced drone management systems.
In Ohio, AirXOS is partnering with that state’s smart mobility program, DriveOhio. Along with Gryphon Sensors, CAL Analytics, and Ohio State University’s College of Engineering, AiRXOS will collaborate on a $5.9 million project for UTM research, complementing DriveOhio’s current efforts for autonomous and connected vehicle testing along the U.S. 33 Smart Mobility Corridor.
AiRXOS has also formed a collaboration with NUAIR Alliance to work on a testing and rating system for unmanned systems to be known as NUSTAR (National Unmanned Systems Testing and Rating). AiRXOS’ role in the NUSTAR system will involve automation of the processes needed by operators, pilots, organisations and drone makers to undertake commercial drone flights.
Finally, AiRXOS is also partnering NASA’s Technical Capability Level (TCL) testing and the expansion of the LAANC and as such has applied to become a LAANC operator in order to further support the drone industry’s movements towards safe integration into managed airspace.
Alan Caslavka, president of Avionics, GE Aviation, says that AiRXOS is making all the right moves to become an integral part of the drone ecosystem.
“AiRXOS is addressing the rapid changes in autonomous vehicle technology, advanced operations, and in the regulatory environment. In doing so, they are reshaping the transportation ecosystem,” he said.
“We’re excited for AiRXOS to help set the standard for autonomous and manned aerial vehicles to share the sky safely.”
Source: GE