Jump Aero Incorporated announced the award of a Phase I Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) research contract from the U.S. Air Force as part of Agility Prime, a program designed to accelerate the commercial market for dual-use advanced air mobility vehicles.
Jump Aero is developing the JA1 eVTOL aircraft to help first responders get to the scene of an emergency as fast as possible. The capabilities of the JA1 aircraft also have significant potential defense utility, and the research conducted as part of this STTR contract addresses one of the potential applications of this emerging technology.
Jump Aero has been awarded a Phase I STTR in partnership with Oklahoma State University's (OSU) Unmanned Systems Research Institute to leverage the high performance of its subscale technology demonstrator as a low-cost platform for the calibration of navigational aids (NAVAID) and instrument landing systems (ILS).
Today, ILS systems are calibrated with an extensive instrument package aboard large, manned aircraft by the FAA's Flight Inspection Division. Our partners at OSU have been working with the FAA to evaluate the potential of drone technology in combination with software defined radios to reduce the cost and increase the safety of NAVAID/ILS inspection. But flying a drone on final approach would typically require runway closure. Jump Aero's high-performance subscale demonstrator could potentially allow ILS calibration by unmanned aircraft without the need to shut down an active approach because the JA1U technology demonstrator is capable of flying approaches at speeds that would enable seamless integration with existing air traffic at airports. By bypassing the need to close a runway to achieve the costs savings of using a drone, there is the potential for these ILS calibrations to be much more practical and cost effective for both the FAA and the Air Force in the future.
"USRI is excited to support Jump Aero on this effort and work with their talented team. The Jump JA1 concept is a unique approach that will provide many benefits to manned and unmanned flight alike and we are excited to help see it to fruition," said Professor Jamey D. Jacob, director of OSU unmanned Systems Research Institute.
"Jump Aero is thrilled to have been selected for this Phase I contract through the Agility Prime program. We look forward to working with our partners at Oklahoma State University to mature these exciting new technologies," said Carl Dietrich, founder & president of Jump Aero Incorporated.
