Autonomous and automatic air-to-air refuelling

Scope:

Air-to-air refuelling enhances military operations by enabling long-range missions. Refuelling currently requires manual coordination between tanker operators and receiving pilots, which is complex and labour-intensive. Automated air-to-air refuelling solutions are expected to reduce workload and increase safety for both crews, while also being essential for future unmanned aerial systems.

The objective of this topic is to explore the development of sensor systems, in particular hardware and sensor fusion, to enable accurate relative navigation between tanker, receiver and refuelling systems,