PRESS RELEASE
THE ATLAS CENTRE HOLDS FIRST TEST FLIGHTS WITH UAV
These first flights of the unmanned aerial vehicles have been part of a test campaign to check the centre’s main runway, as well as the activation of the associated airspace and its correct use.
Construction works are progressing at a good pace and are expected to be finished by year end, so the centre will become fully operational in the first quarter of 2014.
ATLAS is an initiative boosted by the Centre for Advanced Aerospace Technologies (CATEC), an entity managed by the Andalusian Foundation for Aerospace Development (FADA), and will be the first Spanish facility exclusively devoted to testing light unmanned aerial systems (UAS).
THE ATLAS CENTRE HOLDS FIRST TEST FLIGHTS WITH UAV
These first flights of the unmanned aerial vehicles have been part of a test campaign to check the centre’s main runway, as well as the activation of the associated airspace and its correct use.
Construction works are progressing at a good pace and are expected to be finished by year end, so the centre will become fully operational in the first quarter of 2014.
ATLAS is an initiative boosted by the Centre for Advanced Aerospace Technologies (CATEC), an entity managed by the Andalusian Foundation for Aerospace Development (FADA), and will be the first Spanish facility exclusively devoted to testing light unmanned aerial systems (UAS).
Jaén, 21 November 2013.- The Air Traffic Laboratory for Advanced Unmanned Systems (ATLAS) Experimental Flight Centre, located in Villacarrillo, Jaén, has held the first test flights with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), as part of a test campaign to check the main runway for landing and taking off, as well as the activation of the segregated airspace and its correct use. Construction works are progressing at a good pace and are expected to be finished by the end of the year, so the Centre will become fully operational in the first quarter of 2014. Thus, in the next few months Andalusia will have the first Spanish facility exclusively devoted to testing light unmanned aerial systems (UAS or UAV).
ATLAS is an initiative boosted by the Centre for Advanced Aerospace Technologies (CATEC), an entity managed by the Andalusian Foundation for Aerospace Development (FADA), which forms a strategic project for the Andalusian aerospace industry, as it will be positioned at the cutting edge of one of the world’s most promising sub-sectors, and which also represents one of the focus for research and development of new technologies related to the aerospace industry at an international level.
The Centre is intended to contribute to the scientific and technological development, offering the international aerospace community the first permanent facility to safely perform tests, simulations and validation of technologies to be applied to UAVs. Its main goal is that prime aerospace manufacturers and operators developing UAVs, regulator authorities, official organisations and universities, tech and research centres are provided with an aerodrome of excellence and with a suitable airspace for the research and development with this kind of aircraft, considered to be key vehicles for the future of the aerospace industry.
In addition, ATLAS will be able to play an important role when validating news technologies to be applied to unmanned aerial vehicles systems, such as the management of natural disaster, fires, air photography, environment protection, agriculture and forest applications, cinematography, cartography, traffic surveillance, communications, meteorology, security and defence applications.
An exceptional site
ATLAS is located in Herrera within the town of Villacarrillo (Jaen). This site excels at being airspace with a location, climatology and orographic area ideally suited to the development of experimental flights with unmanned aerial vehicles. Besides, its location has excellent communication to the rest of Andalusia and Spain thanks to the motorway (autovía de Andalusia). It is also one hour away from the high speed train (AVE) Córdoba-Madrid and the airports of Granada-Jaen and finally, two hours away from the airports of Seville, Malaga and Almeria.
The new centre will have a small aerodrome equipped with a main runaway of 800 meters length and an auxiliary grass runway of 400 meters, a platform and a three-floor building to monitor the missions (air traffic control tower with approach radar, communications room and associated premises) and services (space for offices, etc.). In addition, ATLAS also has segregate airspace located in centre-east of Jaen of over 900km.
ATLAS, which has been designed by the aerospace engineering firm Aertec Solutions, will have capacity to hold up to four aircraft or unmanned aerial vehicles with a wingspan of 415 meters maximum, as well as a taxiway and a preparation platform to carry out test flight.
The main activities to be developed by ATLAS will be to study how to improve the capacity of the unmanned aerial vehicles and to check effectiveness in the air. This way, performances with light and tactic UAS (MTOW under 650Kg, involving payload.), validation of navigation technologies, aircraft monitoring as well as new techniques, tests and certifications of UAV, accreditation of pilots, operators and mechanics will be carried out.
The Secretary of State for Environment within the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment released a statement of environmental impact for the project which was favourably resolved. This report details the project will not cause significant adverse impact and that FADA-CATEC will take measures when construction works and when the centre starts to become operational to prevent and minimize potential impacts.
Applications with UAS
Unmanned aerial systems can be remotely controlled or are provided with flight capacity without human intervention, avoiding inherent risk when hostile environments, limited visibility or unfavourable weather.
Very used in security and defence, unmanned aerial vehicles need, however, an intense research work to be used in civil and commercial applications and present many advantages in special situations such as natural disasters management, fire and environmental accidents, meteorology, cinematography, make digital maps…
The ATLAS Experimental Flight Centre is an initiative that will enable make a quality leap in the area of unmanned aerial systems and that will also foster a new state-of-the-art technology for the aerospace industry as well as will encourage the competitiveness of Andalusian and Spanish aerospace companies. The centre also endorses the research experience in unmanned aerial flights in the civil area and the work developed in the last few years by a variety of institutions and tech centres related to the Andalusian aerospace industry such as CATEC.
On of CATEC’s prime strategic lines is the development of projects related to UAV. This is something CATEC is fostering by the means of initiatives aimed at making aircraft to be able to manage and solve air traffic. For example, UAV will be able to detect vehicles which are around, decide autonomously changes of level, trajectory or velocity. Precisely, theses tests will be carried out at ATLAS.
Likewise, CATEC is working in other research projects intended to develop intelligent onboard systems to fight forest fires to be applied both in UAV but also in manned aircraft, as well as other initiatives aimed at developing new technologies of cooperation among several UAV and robots to be applied in civil protection missions and disasters (search, rescue and security), entailing risk for human beings. CATEC is also researching the integration of unmanned systems with wireless networks to monitor flora and fauna and protect the environment. These tests will be carried out at the Doñana Biological Station (Huelva).
ATLAS is an initiative boosted by the Centre for Advanced Aerospace Technologies (CATEC), an entity managed by the Andalusian Foundation for Aerospace Development (FADA), which forms a strategic project for the Andalusian aerospace industry, as it will be positioned at the cutting edge of one of the world’s most promising sub-sectors, and which also represents one of the focus for research and development of new technologies related to the aerospace industry at an international level.
The Centre is intended to contribute to the scientific and technological development, offering the international aerospace community the first permanent facility to safely perform tests, simulations and validation of technologies to be applied to UAVs. Its main goal is that prime aerospace manufacturers and operators developing UAVs, regulator authorities, official organisations and universities, tech and research centres are provided with an aerodrome of excellence and with a suitable airspace for the research and development with this kind of aircraft, considered to be key vehicles for the future of the aerospace industry.
In addition, ATLAS will be able to play an important role when validating news technologies to be applied to unmanned aerial vehicles systems, such as the management of natural disaster, fires, air photography, environment protection, agriculture and forest applications, cinematography, cartography, traffic surveillance, communications, meteorology, security and defence applications.
An exceptional site
ATLAS is located in Herrera within the town of Villacarrillo (Jaen). This site excels at being airspace with a location, climatology and orographic area ideally suited to the development of experimental flights with unmanned aerial vehicles. Besides, its location has excellent communication to the rest of Andalusia and Spain thanks to the motorway (autovía de Andalusia). It is also one hour away from the high speed train (AVE) Córdoba-Madrid and the airports of Granada-Jaen and finally, two hours away from the airports of Seville, Malaga and Almeria.
The new centre will have a small aerodrome equipped with a main runaway of 800 meters length and an auxiliary grass runway of 400 meters, a platform and a three-floor building to monitor the missions (air traffic control tower with approach radar, communications room and associated premises) and services (space for offices, etc.). In addition, ATLAS also has segregate airspace located in centre-east of Jaen of over 900km.
ATLAS, which has been designed by the aerospace engineering firm Aertec Solutions, will have capacity to hold up to four aircraft or unmanned aerial vehicles with a wingspan of 415 meters maximum, as well as a taxiway and a preparation platform to carry out test flight.
The main activities to be developed by ATLAS will be to study how to improve the capacity of the unmanned aerial vehicles and to check effectiveness in the air. This way, performances with light and tactic UAS (MTOW under 650Kg, involving payload.), validation of navigation technologies, aircraft monitoring as well as new techniques, tests and certifications of UAV, accreditation of pilots, operators and mechanics will be carried out.
The Secretary of State for Environment within the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment released a statement of environmental impact for the project which was favourably resolved. This report details the project will not cause significant adverse impact and that FADA-CATEC will take measures when construction works and when the centre starts to become operational to prevent and minimize potential impacts.
Applications with UAS
Unmanned aerial systems can be remotely controlled or are provided with flight capacity without human intervention, avoiding inherent risk when hostile environments, limited visibility or unfavourable weather.
Very used in security and defence, unmanned aerial vehicles need, however, an intense research work to be used in civil and commercial applications and present many advantages in special situations such as natural disasters management, fire and environmental accidents, meteorology, cinematography, make digital maps…
The ATLAS Experimental Flight Centre is an initiative that will enable make a quality leap in the area of unmanned aerial systems and that will also foster a new state-of-the-art technology for the aerospace industry as well as will encourage the competitiveness of Andalusian and Spanish aerospace companies. The centre also endorses the research experience in unmanned aerial flights in the civil area and the work developed in the last few years by a variety of institutions and tech centres related to the Andalusian aerospace industry such as CATEC.
On of CATEC’s prime strategic lines is the development of projects related to UAV. This is something CATEC is fostering by the means of initiatives aimed at making aircraft to be able to manage and solve air traffic. For example, UAV will be able to detect vehicles which are around, decide autonomously changes of level, trajectory or velocity. Precisely, theses tests will be carried out at ATLAS.
Likewise, CATEC is working in other research projects intended to develop intelligent onboard systems to fight forest fires to be applied both in UAV but also in manned aircraft, as well as other initiatives aimed at developing new technologies of cooperation among several UAV and robots to be applied in civil protection missions and disasters (search, rescue and security), entailing risk for human beings. CATEC is also researching the integration of unmanned systems with wireless networks to monitor flora and fauna and protect the environment. These tests will be carried out at the Doñana Biological Station (Huelva).
For further information
Marta Mojarro
00 34 954 62 27 27 / 00 34 639 84 74 99
Marta Mojarro
00 34 954 62 27 27 / 00 34 639 84 74 99
