UK’s largest civilian unmanned aircraft takes flight for aid mission trials

Pioneering research into drone technology, which could change the lives of vulnerable people around the world, is showing signs of lift-off at the University of Southampton.

The ULTRA project (Unmanned Low-cost TRAnsport) is the UK’s heaviest non-military Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and has the potential to deliver vital aid to communities in crisis.

The unmanned aircraft has been devised by a team of postdoctoral engineering researchers with guidance from Professor Jim Scanlan, Head of the Computational Engineering and Design Group.

The drone will be able to carry up to 100kg of aid within a 1,000km range. ULTRA has been specifically designed for long range cargo transport missions where it could be required to operate from unprepared airfields with minimal infrastructure.

The aircraft can be equipped with a payload releasing mechanism to deploy cargo for remote resupply or delivery missions. Electronically, ULTRA is fitted with novel distributed architectures, whereby each safety critical component has either mechanical or electrical redundancy built in from the onset.

Currently, the ULTRA drone is being put through its paces with several test flights across the country.

The team carry out the tests by monitoring all aspects of the drone in flight using the onboard avionics and cameras. The information is then relayed back to the team in their van which functions as a mobile ground station.

The project is being funded by the charitable organisation Windracers; more information about the research team can be found on the Soton UAV website.