Autonomy start-up Merlin Labs will develop new technologies to reduce crew workload aboard US special operations aircraft.
The Boston-based firm was awarded a $105 million contract from the US Special Operations Command (SOCOM) on 10 June to design, integrate and test new technologies aimed at reducing the number of crew needed on Lockheed Martin MC-130J flights.
The special mission version of the venerable turboprop transport is used by the US Air Force (USAF) for low-altitude missions, including clandestine infiltration/exfiltration flights and resupply of special operations forces on the ground. MC-130J missions are primarily flown at night, according to the USAF.
The four-engined aircraft also provides aerial refuelling support to special operations rotorcraft.
Each flight includes a minimum crew of two pilots, two loadmasters and at least one combat systems officer. The contract with Merlin aims to reduce the number of personnel required to safely operate a flight.
Without disclosing exactly how it plans to accomplish that, Merlin says the contract will cover design integration, ground evaluations, take-off and landing demonstrations leading into full flight tests and the “maturation of advanced autonomy skills”.
Chief executive Matt George says the deal with SOCOM is “accelerating our ability to bring high levels of autonomy to a variety of fixed-wing platforms”.
In statements concerning other Merlin projects, George has said the company’s philosophy is not to remove human pilots, but use technology to better assist them in handing the complex and unexpected aspects of flying.
“We believe that uncrewed flight is not the way,” George said in April. “We think that there always needs to be a human pilot”, he added, referring to the near-term.
Merlin is already working with the USAF to explore autonomy solutions for its ageing Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker refuelling jets, under an agreement announced in February.
In May, Merlin said company personnel participated in two observation flights aboard USAF KC-135s, intended to give Merlin engineers an opportunity to “assess the tasks that pilots execute in-flight to determine where advanced automation capabilities would be the most impactful for safety, cost savings and efficiency”.
Work on the SOCOM contract for MC-130J autonomy solutions is expected to be complete by 2029.
