Portland, OR – Flex Force has continued to support the FAA’s Airport Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Detection and Mitigation Research Program. Efforts in this area began when the FAA Reauthorization Act was signed into law October 5, 2018. The 2018 Act extended FAA’s funding and authorities through Fiscal Year 2023 and included important legislative changes related to increasing the safety and pace of UAS integration into the National Air Space (NAS).
The FAA first announced an effort to test and evaluate technologies and systems that could detect and mitigate potential safety risks posed by unmanned aircraft at and near airports in August of 2020. Five airports were selected for participation in the testing program. The selection of UAS mitigation systems was made in March 2022 with Flex Force providing the new Dronebuster(r) Block 4 in the summer of 2022.
The FAA deployed the Dronebuster Block 4 for evaluation as a standalone mitigation solution in the fall of 2022 and in early 2023 successfully completed the initial testing at Atlantic City International Airport. The FAA’s UAS detection and mitigation research is expected to continue throughout 2023. The Dronebuster will now proceed at up to four additional airports for testing in the NAS. The results from this testing and evaluation effort will be used to assist the FAA and other authorized Federal entities with planning for certifying, permitting, or authorizing UAS detection and mitigation technologies around the country.
Flex Force’s Dronebuster Block 4 provides an advanced mitigation system for UAS (drones) and can be tailored for a wide variety of operations within the NAS. It is most commonly used as a handheld system, weighing about 5 lbs. However, the Dronebuster can also easily be mounted onto a pan and tilt gimbal as well as integrated into a command and control (C2) system for remote operation (autonomous and manual). The Dronebuster system jams a wide variety of UAS frequency bands. Flex Force is headquartered in Portland, OR at the intersection of a large tech corridor running from Seattle to Silicon Valley.
ABOUT FLEX FORCE
Flex Force designs and manufactures advanced weapon systems for the modern warfighter. The company has a proven track record transitioning emerging new technologies into deployable, combat proven products that provide immediate tactical advantages. Core competencies include targeting, fire control, stabilization, electronic warfare, counter-drone technologies, robotics, and signal processing. The two flagship products, the ASP and the Dronebuster, provide the warfighter with significant overmatch capability. The ASP provides 10x improvement in accuracy for crew served weapons and has been purchased by the US Navy, US Army, and UK Navy. The Dronebuster is in use worldwide by U.S. and coalition forces defeating terrorist drone threats.