Because the FAA continues to develop the method for granting type certifications for unmanned vehicles, Matternet’s M2 delivery drone receives the primary amendment to type certification, because the platform has evolved.
by DRONELIFE Staff Author Ian J. McNabb
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Mountain View, CA-based Matternet, a developer of urban and suburban UAV delivery systems, recently announced that its Matternet M2 drone received its first amendment to its UAS Type Certification by the Federal Aviation Administration, highlighting the continued improvements to the M2’s hardware and software package which can enable Matternet and its customers, (like UPS and Ameriflight) to scale operations faster and more cost-effectively.
“We’re thrilled with the FAA’s decision to grant this amendment, the first-ever to a UAS Type Certification,” said Andreas Raptopoulos, Founder and CEO of Matternet. “As we develop more advanced technology, it’s very vital that we’re in a position to move quickly through the FAA Type Certification process, the gold standard in airworthiness certification.” Matternet has been a pacesetter in government relations throughout the space, receiving its second type certification before every other product receives its first. In 2022, the M2 became the primary non-military unmanned aircraft to realize Type Certification (September 2022) and Production Certification (November 2022) in america, after vigorous testing by the FAA found that the drone was each airworthy and eligible for scaling as a part of delivery operations.
Matternet provides an end-to-end delivery solution built across the M2 Drone, the Matternet Software Platform, and the Matternet Station. Currently, each UPS and Ameriflight are operating the M2 under Part 135 plans, enabling 1000’s of economic flights over densely populated urban and suburban regions.The scalability of the M2 platform was highlighted earlier this 12 months, when the FAA granted Matternet a waiver that may allow a single pilot to regulate as much as 20 Matternet M2s. Production of the brand new M2 model is starting now, as Matternet continues to work on increasing access through regulatory approval worldwide. The corporate continues to explore and scale operations throughout america, Europe, and the Middle East.
More information on Matternet and the M2 Drone is obtainable here.