The Skydweller Aero has successfully conducted the first fully autonomous flights of a solar-powered, heavy-payload, long-endurance, unscrewed aircraft. Skydweller Aero acquired the Solar Impulse 2 in 2019, following its completion of a piloted circumnavigation of the world on solar power. By connecting flight-control computers to the existing mechanical controls, the Solar Impulse 2 was initially converted into an optionally piloted aircraft. The aircraft, remotely piloted with three-dimensional guidance from the ground, demonstrated flight tests at Albacete Air Base in Spain. As explained by Skydweller CEO Robert Miller, the development of a full-authority, fully redundant autonomous flight control system was required … Continue reading Skydweller Aero’s Solar-Powered Aircraft Achieves Autonomous Flight Milestone