Cessna Caravan of Joby Aviation company made an autonomous flight across the USA

According to the company, during the flight with intermediate landings, a pilot was in the cabin for backup, but he did not need to intervene in the management at the stages of taxiing, takeoff, landing, and movement along the route (the length was 5148 km, according to Habr - about 5150 km). The route ended in the state of North Carolina on the Outer Banks islands.

Specialists from the California control center and the Shaw Air Force Base in South Carolina monitored the flight at a distance of up to 3738 km. The aircraft performed maneuvers in the busy airspace of Phoenix-Deer Valley Airport and changed its route in real-time to bypass thunderstorms and bad weather.

The system uses technology from the company Xwing, acquired by Joby Aviation in 2024. In total, the developer has conducted over 400 autonomous flights with a total duration of about 800 hours. The company plans to apply the system for commercial cargo transportation, rescue operations, and military supplies. Now the aircraft is being prepared for a return flight through the states of North Carolina, Virginia, Kentucky, Kansas, Oklahoma, Utah, and Oregon.