ACUASI and Everts Air Cargo

Merlin partnered with the Alaska Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration (ACUASI) and Everts Air Cargo to trial the first autonomy system integrated into the NAS as part of a $1m contract in support of the FAA Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration Office.

In June 2023, the successful test flights were conducted out of the FAA-designated University of Alaska Fairbanks UAS Test Site with 18 test flights conducted to a total of 6 different airports, encountering a wide variety of airspace, runway, and weather conditions over 66 flight hours.

“Operating in Alaska is a real challenge. I like to say we’re the final exam. If you can fly here you can fly anywhere as we deal with long distances, extreme climate variations, and limited communications coverage. As we’ve learned in collaboration with Merlin’s team, it’s very apparent that they are doing this right. Their integrated approach to our unique ecosystem is one of the main reasons they were the first company with which we approached the FAA. They use real data to train the onboard automation system to ensure safety.”

Dr. Cathy Cahill
Director of the Alaska Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration (ACUASI) at the UAF Geophysical Institute.