Command an Autonomous Black Hawk Helicopter from 300 Miles Away
How do you command a Black Hawk? helicopter to perform a mission autonomously from 300 miles (480 km) away?
Quite simply, by using a tablet connected to the aircraft via datalink.
During the Association of the United States Army's annual meeting in Washington, D.C., (Association of the United States Army 2024), visitors and U.S. Army senior leaders saw how a Black Hawk helicopter integrated with Sikorsky's MATRIX? autonomy system can receive remote mission commands in real-time. Then, carry out that mission on its own, using its onboard autonomous systems, without remote control or pilot inputs.
The MATRIX system is unique because it's not a simple flight director following a planned route. Instead, the system acts fully independently, reacting to the dynamic combat environment to avoid threats, optimize routing, and execute emergency procedures if necessary.
Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems President Stephanie Hill — a non-pilot — commanded the autonomous Black Hawk helicopter to take off, hover, fly a circuit, and land in Connecticut from a tablet during the AUSA symposium in Washington, DC.
Although safety pilots are in the cockpit, the aircraft flew and navigated itself without pilot input.
Ready to transition to the U.S. Army
Following more than ten years of co-development with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the MATRIX autonomy system is operationally tested. MATRIX will enable contested logistics and operational flexibility with any aircraft, any operator, and in any weather/environment to deliver mission critical, time sensitive sustainment to the point of need.
As part of the DARPA ALIAS program, Sikorsky has furthered the development of the MATRIX autonomy system to perform missions with greater efficiency and safety – whether with two pilots, one pilot, or zero pilots on board. As a forward node in the mesh network, MATRIX equipped aircraft provide mission command and fully autonomous capability at the edge.
