- Airbus’ MQ-72C rerouted itself after restricted airspace suddenly appeared during flight
- Starlink carried remote commands to a cargo helicopter from 70 miles away
- Shield AI’s Hivemind software helps helicopters navigate without constant pilot intervention
The US Army has tested Airbus’ MQ-72C Lakota Connector, an autonomous cargo helicopter designed to reroute around suddenly restricted airspace.
Operators controlled the helicopter from distances reaching 70 miles through communications infrastructure supporting operations beyond conventional line of sight.
The aircraft follows a flight plan supplied by a human operator, while onboard autonomy software handles navigation and responses to changing conditions.
Airbus conducted five demonstration flights at Huntsville Executive Airport in Alabama, showcasing autonomous hovering, complex turns, and conventional airport traffic patterns.
During one exercise, the aircraft encountered a newly introduced restricted airspace area and calculated an alternative route using its onboard autonomy systems.
“The aircraft had to autonomously make decisions about how it was going to route itself around the no-fly zones,” said Jaysen Yochim, Airbus’ senior director for the Aerial Logistics Connector programme.
A pilot remained aboard for safety during these trials, although Yochim said the individual never needed to assume control.
The helicopter’s autonomy depends partly on Shield AI’s Hivemind software, which interprets imagery collected by onboard sensors.
Two LiDAR sensors, facing forward and backward, work alongside a nose-mounted electro-optical camera to supply environmental information for navigation decisions.
Remote command relies on a separate communications layer, with SpaceX’s Starlink satellite network carrying instructions between ground control stations and the aircraft.
Airbus has already tested this arrangement beyond conventional line of sight, enabling human operators to issue commands from far distances.
We’ve had flights that have been autonomously commanded from up to 70 miles away. All of that is stuff that’s happened in the last year,” Yochim added.
“We also have where the aircraft can be commanded from both a ground control station like this and also with the Samsung tablet.”
Cargo conversion and military adoption remain unfinished
Airbus based the MQ 72C on its UH 72B Lakota, derived from the H145, but additional modifications remain necessary for cargo operations.
Front-mounted clamshell doors would create a passage through the cabin, allowing crews to load and unload supplies more quickly.
Although Airbus has completed initial design work and preliminary testing, flight and wind tunnel tests remain outstanding. The company expects to install the doors around 2029 or 2030.
The Army also needs better ways to supply troops following long-distance air assaults involving future MV 75A tiltrotors.
Major General David Gardner, head of the 101st Airborne Division, explained the challenge of transporting heavy equipment across hundreds of miles.
“We can put some things inside the helicopter, and we can put some things under a helicopter with a sling load. We’re not going to sling load something moving 250-ish knots for 500 miles. We’re not going to hang Humvees under that,” said Gardner.
Other contenders for autonomous military cargo delivery include the AW139, Black Hawk, Robinson R66 and Bell 505.
The Army has not announced a procurement requirement, although its interest in Airbus’ demonstration suggests autonomous cargo delivery is receiving attention.
