RENO, Nev. – Media are invited to watch the first test of NASA’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Traffic Management (UTM) research platform from 9-11:30 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 19, at Reno-Stead Airport. This event is not open to the public.
During this test, five drones will fly beyond the line-of-sight of their operators to test the planning, tracking and alerting capabilities of NASA’s UTM platform, a critical step in developing technology and procedures for safe drone air traffic management. From this test, NASA, in collaboration with the Federal Aviation Administration, will collect data critical to refining its UTM research.
To attend this event, media must contact Sharon Lozano at sharon.k.lozano@nasa.gov by 8 p.m. Monday, Oct. 17, and arrive by 8:30 a.m. Wednesday at the Nevada Unmanned, Autonomous & NextGen Collaborative Environment (NUANCE) Lab. The NUANCE Lab is located at 4895 Texas Ave. in Stead.
Media viewing the test from NUANCE will be able to watch the drone flight paths on large video displays in a 3-D virtual environment. NASA engineers will be on hand to describe what is happening during the test. Information booths and test drones will be set up to provide more information, and experts will be available for interviews.
For background information about this test, visit http://go.nasa.gov/2dV35z9.
For more information about NASA aeronautics, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/aeronautics. For questions prior to the event, contact J.D. Harrington at (303) 3585241 or at j.d.harrington@nasa.gov.
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The Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority receives no state or local funding. All operating revenues are derived from tenant and concession fees. The Reno-Tahoe International Airport (RNO) is the 66th busiest commercial airport in the United States, with 3.4 million passengers per year. For more details, visit www.renoairport.com.