General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA‑ASI) had a significant presence at this month’s Farnborough International Air Show, including a demonstration of its Advanced Cockpit Block 50 Ground Control Station (GCS).
“Our U.S. Air Force customer continues to show elevated interest in expanding the situational awareness for its Predator and Reaper pilots and the Advanced Cockpit is a tremendous tool that facilitates their mission,” said Frank W. Pace, president, Aircraft Systems, GA-ASI. “Farnborough is the perfect venue to demonstrate the Advanced Cockpit’s capabilities to the worldwide aviation community.”
GA-ASI recently received a four-year contract from the Air Force to design, develop, and test the Advanced Cockpit, which was initially developed using Internal Research and Development (IRAD) funds. Under the deal, the company will deliver seven ground control stations, manuals, and training.
An updated version over the company’s legacy Predator/Reaper GCS which has logged over 2.8 million flight hours since 1994, the Advanced Cockpit has been designed in accordance with the U.S. Department of Defense’s vision for GCS interoperability and commonality as outlined by the Office of the Secretary of Defense’s Unmanned Control Segment Working Group (UCS-WG). Key among its enhancements is the human-centered display technology, including improved synthetic video with 3D graphics and moving maps, a 120-degree horizon field of view on multiple wide-screen graphical overlays, and high-definition video.
Source: Press Release