Americans are actively moving to create semi-Autonomous drones. Yesterday, December 6, the press service of General Atomics announced the tests of the Avenger drone under the control of artificial intelligence.
The drone made an Autonomous flight under the control of system CODE (Collaborative Operations in Denied Environment). This system is part of the us Department of defense's large-scale Skyborg program to create Autonomous and semi-Autonomous reconnaissance and combat aircraft.
The Avenger drone, also known as Predator C
Image source: ga-asi.com
"This is a big step towards more complex Autonomous missions for unmanned aerial vehicles, where operator involvement can be minimized. On this flight, we used the Avenger as a technology demonstratorfor the Skyborg program, " said David Alexander, President of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems.
As part of the Autonomous flight, CODE software controlled the maneuvering of the Avenger UAV for more than two hours without the participation of a pilot. The flight also "involved" five virtual aircraft, which made it possible to fully work out data transfer between drones.
General Atomics is one of four companies that are fighting for the right to build promising multi-purpose drones for the us army as part of the Skyborg program. Company Kratos Unmanned Aerial Systems and Boeing have previously showed their prototype. Kratos has the XQ-58 Valkyrie, and Boeing has the BATS. The developments of General Atomics and Northrop Grumman remain secret for the time being.
