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Daleville, Ala., November 16, 2011 – – CATI Training Systems has been awarded a contract to deliver eight X-TUAS™ ground control station (GCS) unmanned aerial systems training devices to Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s Daytona Beach, Fla., campus. The training devices will be part of the new CATI UAS Laboratory supporting the university’s new Bachelor of Science degree program in Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Science.
The eight systems are each comprised of two stations for pilot and sensor operator training that are configurable as a dual station crew training system or as 16 individual training stations. The X-TUAS™ device is nearly identical to actual GCS operational systems used by defense, law enforcement, and research and development communities.
CATI President Fred Zalzal thanked the Embry-Riddle team headed by Dan Macchiarella, chair of aeronautical science, for selecting CATI and for providing an opportunity to build this world-class facility where both academic and research programs will have access to sophisticated modeling and simulation equipment.
“Our goal was to create a learning environment that provides maximum flexibility to the instructional staff and real-world training to allow students to gain a complete understanding of UAS operations, mission planning and procedures,” said Jim Williams, CATI’s manager for business development. “We selected CATI’s training devices following a comprehensive study of available systems,” Macchiarella said. “CATI clearly offered the highest degrees of fidelity and value in its flight training devices. These systems will afford students with unique opportunities to develop the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed.”
Embry-Riddle named the new laboratory after CATI in recognition of CATI’s major donation of four of the systems. This donation will allow the lab, located in the heart of in central Florida’s simulation and modeling community, to be fully operational in early 2012 at significantly reduced cost.
Open to U.S. citizens who have a basic background in math and physics, Embry-Riddle’s new degree in Unmanned Aircraft Systems Science helps meet the growing demand for skilled UAS pilots and operators. The program focuses on the operations aspect of UAS, preparing students for such roles as pilot, observer, sensor operator, or operations administrator. The program offers a pilot track for students who are interested in flight operations from the pilot’s perspective and a non-pilot track for students seeking a career as a sensor operator or a support position.
CATI Training Systems, headquartered in Daleville, Ala., designs, develops and manufactures unmanned aircraft systems training devices and visual systems for modeling and simulation, including the X-IG™ image generator. For more information about the company, visit www.catinet.com or contact Jim Williams at jwilliams@catinet.com.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the world’s largest, fully accredited university specializing in aviation and aerospace, is a nonprofit, independent institution offering more than 40 baccalaureate, master’s, and Ph.D. degree programs in its colleges of Arts and Sciences, Aviation, Business, and Engineering. Embry-Riddle educates students at residential campuses in Daytona Beach, Fla., and Prescott, Ariz., and through the Worldwide Campus with more than 150 locations in the United States, Europe, Asia, Canada, and the Middle East. The university is a major research center, seeking solutions to real-world problems in partnership with the aerospace industry, other universities, and government agencies. For more information on Embry-Riddle’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems Science degree, contact Ted Beneigh at beneight@erau.edu, call (386) 226-6956 or visit www.embryriddle.edu.
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