NASA has tested a computer software for determining the proper space between on-flight aircraft aboard a Boeing 787 test airplane.The Airborne Spacing for Terminal Arrival Routes software is designed to calculate and display speed information for pilots to guide the aircraft into a safe distance from another aircraft, NASA said Monday.
NASA intends for the software to help reduce commercial flight delays by minimizing flight path deviations and noise over airport surroundings.
NASA engineer Roy Roper operated the ASTAR software on a laptop aboard the ecoDemonstrator 787 and transmitted speed commands to the 787 pilots.
“ASTAR represents the first of several inventive technologies NASA’s aeronautical innovators are working on that will be tested with the help of the ecoDemonstrator test airplanes,” said Jaiwon Shin, an associate administrator at NASA.
The space agency plans to develop actual flight hardware for further testing, taking into consideration the gains from the ASTAR flight tests.
