A very brief overview of present day Autonomous Aircraft and upcoming projects

About the channel:
an aviation channel where I talk about different topics/events in aviation industry from commercial to military and everything in between

About Autonomous Aircraft:
An autonomous aircraft is a plane that can fly without a human pilot or remote control, using onboard robotic systems to operate independently. Autonomous aircraft can:
Interact with air traffic control
Fully autonomous aircraft can communicate with air traffic controllers and other pilots as if a human were in command.
Make split-second decisions
AI-driven systems can process large amounts of data in real-time to avoid collisions, navigate bad weather, and handle emergencies.
Optimize flight paths
Autonomous aircraft can reduce fuel consumption, streamline operations, and save airlines money.
Handle flight tasks
Autonomous aircraft can perform tasks like starting and shutting down engines, checking terrain, and refusing flight plans that would intersect terrain

The computing capability of aircraft flight and navigation systems followed the advances of computing technology, beginning with analog controls and evolving into microcontrollers, then system-on-a-chip (SOC) and single-board computers (SBC).Position and movement sensors give information about the aircraft state. Exteroceptive sensors deal with external information like distance measurements, while exproprioceptive ones correlate internal and external states. Non-cooperative sensors are able to detect targets autonomously so they are used for separation assurance and collision avoidance.UAV actuators include digital electronic speed controllers (which control the RPM of the motors) linked to motors/engines and propellers, servomotors (for planes and helicopters mostly), weapons, payload actuators, LEDs and speakers. UAV software called the flight stack or autopilot. The purpose of the flight stack is to obtain data from sensors, control motors to ensure UAV stability, and facilitate ground control and mission planning communication. Most UAVs use a radio for remote control and exchange of video and other data. Early UAVs had only narrowband uplink. Downlinks came later. These bi-directional narrowband radio links carried command and control (C&C) and telemetry data about the status of aircraft systems to the remote operator. For very long range flights, military UAVs also use satellite receivers as part of satellite navigation systems. In cases when video transmission was required, the UAVs will implement a separate analog video radio link.