Revolution Aerospace Australia Advances Emerging Aviation Technologies in Torres Strait Islands

June 13, 2024

Revolution Aerospace Australia (RevAero) is excited to announce that it has been awarded a Round 2 - Emerging Aviation Technologies Partnership (EATP) Program Grant by the Commonwealth Government. This grant, valued at approximately $1.7 million, will allow RevAero to accelerate enabling drone technologies and prepare for operations to support Torres Strait communities. The project will commence in July 2024 and conclude by July 2025.

Building on the remarkable progress made in EATP Round 1, RevAero is positioned to significantly impact drone logistics and operations, providing drone solutions with commercially viable ranges and payloads that can practically enhance regional connectivity and supply chains.

The project will see RevAero develop and deploy a middle and last-mile integrated drone cargo logistics capability to the Torres Strait. This includes an Integrated Drone Logistics Platform (IDLP) that interfaces with existing logistics systems, offering advanced routing and scheduling capabilities for cargo distribution across the RevAero network. RevAero’s Fleet Management Platform (FMP) will enable a single pilot to manage multiple UAVs, a critical advancement for scaling commercial drone operations, leveraging RevAero’s work under EATP Round 1.

In collaboration with the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) and Lifesaving New South Wales, RevAero will enhance automated detection capabilities in maritime environments by developing a state-of-the-art search and rescue surveillance payload. Additionally, RevAero will mature its Detect and Avoid (DAA) payload to pre-commercial stages, integrating it with the FMP for improved safety and operational efficiency.

RevAero is deeply committed to engaging with indigenous communities throughout the Torres Strait Islands. In partnership with Patty Mills and The Mills Foundation, RevAero will work to identify specific community needs, define operational routes, and determine suitable locations for facilities.

RevAero will also explore its capabilities in Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations, demonstrating how drone technologies can facilitate safe, responsive, and effective aid delivery in the Torres Strait regions.

On the regulatory front, RevAero aims to address regulatory barriers associated with Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations by achieving Australia’s first SAIL III approval in collaboration with the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA).

RevAero is dedicated to catalysing the Australian aviation industry by promoting competition, efficiency, and reliability. The project aims to educate the Australian Emerging Aviation Technology (EAT) industry, providing an avenue for growing EAT experts in Australia. By attracting interest and talent to RevAero and its partners, the project seeks to strengthen the overall capability and innovation within the sector.

The project will take place in the Torres Strait Islands and RevAero's headquarters in South-East Queensland.

For further information on the project, queries can be sent to eatp@revn.aero

Image: RevAero team during HT-100 Test Flights

Revolution Aerospace and Thales Australia Showcase Ground-breaking UAS Traffic Management (UTM) Milestone in Brisbane

The collaboration between Revolution Aerospace and Thales Australia marks a major milestone before the anticipated live trial in the Whitsundays in June 2024.

Brisbane, April 09, 2024 - Revolution Aerospace (RevAero) Australia achieved a significant milestone in UAS Traffic Management (UTM) on March 21, 2024. After 15 months of collaboration between RevAero and Thales Australia, the team demonstrated a suite of strategic and tactical deconfliction scenarios within a collaborative, synthetic UTM ecosystem. Completing the research, development, and integration between RevAero and Thales is a key preparatory activity for a live trial of long-range middle- and last-mile cargo delivery by drone, scheduled to take place in the Whitsundays in June 2024.  The Whitsundays trial will showcase end-to-end drone cargo delivery, featuring a variety of drone types, delivery distances, and scenarios in uncontrolled airspace, with the UTM system as key enabling technology used throughout.

The UTM demonstration conducted in Brisbane, was provided to local, state, and federal government agencies, as well as a diverse range of industry representatives including key Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM). One of the more advanced technological developments is the routing and scheduling algorithms developed by RevAero, which coordinate and deconflict thousands of operations across multiple UTM Service Suppliers, while accounting for real-world factors such as delays before and during flights and maximising efficient use of the airspace.

RevAero’s UTM capability also incorporates constraint management and conformance monitoring services, which work seamlessly with RevAero’s low Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP) Detect and Avoid (DAA) payload, designed to deconflict UAV from crewed aircraft. This allows RevAero to demonstrate real-time dynamic rerouting and tactical deconfliction, not just for UAV-UAV conflicts, but also conflicts between crewed aircraft and UAVs operating in close proximity within a UTM ecosystem.

Throughout the event, RevAero and Thales dived into the challenges encountered across a variety of UTM use cases, expanding on the utility of the innovative solutions that have been developed by the team. The enthusiastic participation and insightful enquiries from the guests underscored the potential application of RevAero’s system in solving their unique challenges.

Image: RevAero and Thales UTM and DAA team after the demonstration

Drone based e-commerce is already on our door-step and expected to scale within the next 5-10 years. And UTM will be critical for coordinating the movements of the thousands of movements per hour which comes with scale. While most UTM providers can show-case a drone flying from A-B, and basic capabilities such as platform and pilot registration and conformance monitoring, real progress will only happen when thousands of movements can be deconflicted before and during flight, without assuming away real-life challenges such as the accuracy which different drones can maintain their assigned track, and delays in take-offs or arrivals. RevAero and Thales have really pushed the technological boundaries on this front, and I am excited to see where we can take these important developments.

Dr Terrence Martin

CEO and Co-Founder, Revolution Aerospace 

Advanced UTM services are a necessary enabler for dense BVLOS operations into the very near future. As a global leader in UTM thought leadership, we’re excited to put that leadership into play with fully functional services. Our team has done some amazing work and we’re looking forward to offering our solutions in a commercial capacity in the very near future.

Kristian Cruickshank

CTO and Co-Founder, Revolution Aerospace

Implementing drone-based cargo delivery for remote and regional Australian communities requires more than advanced drones. It requires a unified effort from corporations, governments, and regulators to build a supportive ecosystem. Along with our drones Revolution Aerospace is developing UTM and DAA systems that will help shape this future.

Guy Morris

Project Director - EATP

About RevAero

The RevAero mission of “Benefitting society through revolutionary advances in autonomous systems technologies” is firmly aligned with the purpose of the EATP program, exploring the utility of emerging aviation technologies to address community needs, particularly in regional Australia.  

Revolution Aerospace (RevAero) - As the consortium lead, the collective experience of the RevAero team in the autonomous systems sector, particularly Uncrewed Aircraft Systems (UAS) and UAS Traffic Management (UTM), is fundamental to the deployment and scaling of emerging aviation technology across regional Australia. Since establishment in 2021, RevAero has a team of 20 dedicated engineers, researchers, and subject matter experts (SMEs) in autonomous systems. RevAero co-founders, Dr Terry Martin (CEO) and Mr Kristian Cruickshank (CTO) hold a wealth of experience leading and managing large-scale Emerging Aviation Technologies projects with governments and partners across the globe.  

Get in touch

For further information on the project, queries can be sent to eatp@revn.aero and general inquiries to contact@revn.aero.

Thales

Thales - Thales Australia is a trusted partner of the Australian Defence Force and is also present in commercial sectors ranging from air traffic management and ground transport systems to security systems and services. Thales Australia employs over 4,300 people directly and supports over 2,051 jobs along its Australian supply chain. Since 2018 Thales Australia has spent over $1.9 billion with local Australian businesses.  

Thales Australia has a history of patient investment to build advanced in-country capability across manufacturing, critical systems, and services. Close collaborative relationships with local customers, Australian SME suppliers and research institutions combined with technology transfer from our global business enables Thales to tailor high quality solutions for Australian and export markets, generating revenue of $1.6 billion in exports over the past 10 years. 

Revolution Aerospace, Queensland University of Technology and Trusted Autonomous Systems Unveil Breakthrough Cognitive Electronic Warfare System

A collaboration that will advance Australia's electronic warfare capabilities has culminated in a final in-field demonstration.

Brisbane, Australia - March 28, 2024 - Revolution Aerospace (RevAero) and Queensland University of Technology (QUT) have successfully concluded a ground-breaking collaboration resulting in the development of a Cognitive Electronic Warfare (C-EW) payload for small Uncrewed Aerial Vehicle (UAV). Funded by the Trusted Autonomous Systems Defence Cooperative Research Centre (TASDCRC), this project, conducted from March 2022 to March 2024, marks a significant milestone in the development of sovereign EW capabilities. The final prototype, successfully demonstrated hardware-in-the-loop tests and live flight tests on 28 February 2024.

Image: RevAero and TAS-CRC during the live in-field demonstration 

Experts from RevAero and QUT joined forces to develop the C-EW system, integrating cutting-edge Digital Signal Processing (DSP) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) with compact Software Defined Radios (SDR). This system offers the defence industry a mobile, cost-effective solution for detecting, localising, and classifying adversary electromagnetic emissions, providing a significant advantage in modern warfare scenarios. 

The successful completion of this project aligns with the federal government's Defence Industry Development Strategy, promoting job creation and fostering STEM careers in Australia. RevAero's commitment to reinvesting profits into research and development underscores its dedication to driving innovation in the defence sector.

RevAero is a strong advocate for the principles of smart, small and many, in the modern battlespace. Over the last 2 years, we have been maturing a UAV Cognitive EW capability that can ultimately provide the ADF with mobile, miniature, low-cost electromagnetic spectrum sensors, which have reduced physical signatures and smaller radiated power levels, ultimately providing a means for passive sensing at much closer ranges to adversaries without detection. When deployed as a multi-static capability at scale, the product has the potential to deliver game changing asymmetric advantage for ADF operations across the Electromagnetic Spectrum (EMS), including significant savings when cross-compared with existing EW methods. 

Dr Terrence Martin,

CEO and Co-Founder, Revolution Aerospace 

About RevAero

Revolution Aerospace Australia (RevAero) - A Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) based in Queensland, specialising in autonomous systems technology. With a focus on advanced signal processing, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Electronic Warfare (EW), and autonomous vehicles, RevAero is at the forefront of revolutionising defence technology. 

Get in touch 

For further information on the project, queries can be sent to contact@revn.aero

TAS 

Trusted Autonomous Systems - A leading autonomous and robotic cooperative research centre (CRC) in Australia facilitating trusted and effective cooperation between humans and machines. 

QUT

Queensland University of Technology (QUT) - An ambitious institution, with a growing research output focused on technology and innovation. QUT ranks in the world’s top 200 universities.