OSHKOSH — UAV Navigation reports that Burt Rutan’s Boomerang twin-engine, asymmetric plane has been fitted with an Electronic Flight Instrument System (EFIS) which runs on the company’s AP04OEM2 Attitude and Heading Reference System (AHRS)/Inertial Navigation System (INS).
Lightweight materials were used to build this twin-engined, turbocharged, long-range, high-altitude airplane, company officials report, adding its asymmetrical design provides safety advantages in the event of an engine failure. The Boomerang was designed by aviation legend, Burt Rutan, who flew it from 1996 to 2002 as his personal plane.
Tres Clements, a former employee at Burt Rutan’s company, Scaled Composites, took over the plane in 2011. He is flying it and promoting its unique features with the help of a team that includes former Scaled Composites’ employees, test pilot Mike Melvill and engineer Ryan Malherbe.
Guillermo Parodi, UAV Navigation’s CEO and founder, commented: “The Boomerang is one of the most innovative planes to fly in two decades. When we saw it reappear at Oshkosh 2011 at the hands of Tres Clements we could not help noticing that its avionics were based on a 1990’s Apple PowerBook! So we jumped on the opportunity and offered our new EFIS system.”
Founded in 2004, UAV Navigation is a privately owned company that specializes in the design of flight control systems and motion processors. The company’s high performance navigation and autopilot solutions are used by many renowned global aerospace companies in a wide range of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), such as high-performance tactical unmanned planes, targets, mini UAVs, helicopters and quadcopters aerial vehicles.
For more information:UAVNavigation.org
