Canadian Coast Guard Conducts BVLOS Trials of UAS in Oklahoma with Martin UAV and Kongsberg Geospatial

Ottawa, CA: The Canadian Coast Guard was in Oklahoma recently, albeit virtually. Kongsberg Geospatial announced today they successfully conducted Phase 1 trials of the Martin UAV V-BAT on behalf of the Canadian Coast Guard at a UAS test facility operated by the Chocktaw Indian Nation of Oklahoma, in rural southeastern Oklahoma.

Initial BVLOS trials of the Martin UAV V-BAT UAS in the US were monitored in real-time over the horizon in Canada.

The Canadian Coast Guard is conducting trials of a new long-endurance UAV surveillance system for possible deployment on Canadian Coast Guard Vessels. The Martin UAV V-BAT aircraft was selected to provide the unique ability to combine take off and landing from the small confines aboard ship with the long endurance of a fixed-wing aircraft while carrying multiple sensors. The project is funded by Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC).

Due to COVID travel restrictions the first trial couldn’t be held in Canada as originally planned, so the Canadian Coast Guard held their first phase of an unmanned system demonstration virtually as the V-BAT flew at the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma’s (CNO) test facility with Kongsberg Geospatial and Martin UAV personnel in attendance, while other teams observed from Canada.

The flights demonstrated rapid launch and recovery, long endurance, confined space take-off and landing, and vehicle and person tracking using electro-optical and infrared cameras. The cameras were aided by an object detection and tracking capability software.

The flights were monitored real-time and live video of the telemetry and payload was streamed to Ottawa Canada for observation by the Canadian Coast Guard. The video feeds were then incorporated into Kongsberg Geospatial Modular ISR Data Analysis and Storage system called MIDAS. MIDAS serves as a “mission intelligence coordinator” to view current and historical sensor feeds of the UAS within a temporal and geospatial context to increase sensor utilization effectiveness.

“While it may seem strange to have the Canadian Coast Guard conducting drone flights over a cattle ranch in Oklahoma, this was actually a pragmatic decision, given the limitations imposed on travel by the pandemic”, said Paige Cutland, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Kongsberg Geospatial. “The initial trials of the V-BAT were to establish flight performance characteristics that can be evaluated anywhere.”

With Phase 1 concluded successfully, the next phase for the Canadian Coast Guard will be this summer when Martin UAV and Kongsberg Geospatial go to sea on a Canadian Coast Guard vessel for shipboard demonstration.

About Kongsberg Geospatial: Based in Ottawa, Canada, Kongsberg Geospatial creates precision real-time software for mapping, geospatial visualization, and situational awareness. The Company’s products are primarily deployed in solutions for air-traffic control, Command and Control, and air defense. Over nearly three decades of providing dependable performance under extreme conditions, Kongsberg Geospatial has become the leading geospatial technology provider for mission-critical applications where lives are on the line. Kongsberg Geospatial is a subsidiary of Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace.Media contact:1-800-267-2626 or reach us by email at info@kongsberggeospatial.com

About Martin UAV: Martin UAV is an advanced technology company based in Plano, TX. The company specializes in building wholly-unique, unmanned aircraft systems and associated flight control software. The company’s systems are commercially developed to fill critical operational needs in tactical & confined operational environments. Its V-BAT series aircraft is the only single-engine ducted fan VTOL that has the ability to launch & recover from a hover, fly eleven hours in horizontal flight, and make mid-flight transitions to “hover & stare” at any time throughout a given mission set. For more information visit: martinuav.com.

About the Canadian Coast Guard: Headquartered in Ottawa, the Canadian Coast Guard (https://www.ccg-gcc.gc.ca/index-eng.html) is the coast guard of Canada. Founded in 1962, the coast guard is tasked with marine search and rescue, communication, navigation and transportation issues in Canadian waters, such as navigation aids and icebreaking, marine pollution response and providing support for other Canadian government initiatives. The coast guard operates 119 vessels of varying sizes and 22 helicopters, along with a variety of smaller craft.

About DRDC: Based in Ottawa, Canada, Defence Research and Development Canada (https://www.canada.ca/en/defence-research-development.html) is the Department of National Defence’s and Canadian Armed Forces’ science and technology organization. DRDC develops and delivers new technical solutions and advice for not only DND/CAF, but also other federal departments, and the safety and security communities.