The FAA just let a pilotless cargo plane fly out of a working airport
An aircraft with nobody on board flew itself out of a working Louisiana airport last week. It carried spare parts, medical supplies and cans of water. Its route took it over people’s houses.
Elroy Air said on Wednesday it had completed the first uncrewed autonomous flights under a federal programme. That programme exists to fold self-flying aircraft into American airspace.
What flew, and where
Elroy Air calls the aircraft Chaparral. It is a hybrid-electric design that takes off vertically and carries more than 500lb of cargo. Its range runs to 450 miles. It needs no runway and no charging infrastructure.
The flights ran for a week in late August at Houma-Terrebonne Airport. The company describes it as one of the busiest rotorcraft airports in the country. Air traffic control handled the aircraft alongside everything else in the pattern.
The cargo was deliberately mundane. Packages, medical supplies, a toolbox of spare...
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