Mary-Louise Hoffman
Harris and Ligado Networks have agreed to collaborate in efforts to develop, test and deploy beyond-visual-line-of-sight technologies for unmanned aircraft systems.
Both companies aim to showcase joint technologies and expertise to support the integration of commercial drones into U.S. airspace, Ligado said Thursday.
The North Dakota Centers of Excellence Commission awarded Harris a two-year grant earlier this year to create aviation-grade network services for UAS BVLOS operations.
The Harris-Ligado partnership will evaluate mission-critical use cases to gather data that can help the Federal Aviation Administration develop safety requirements for drone certification processes.
The alliance plans to demonstrate BVLOS UAS through Harris’ HubNet pilot network in North Dakota and Ligado’s network demonstration initiative in Louisiana.
Reston, Virginia-based Ligado is developing a satellite-terrestrial network designed to facilitate connectivity for the aviation, public safety, energy, rail and commercial trucking industries.
