On Friday 11 December, a public dissemination event was held at the ESPLORA interactive science centre in Kalkara to present the results of SATMET: Situation Awareness and Traffic Management for Engineless Taxiing.
The 30-month research and innovation project received funding from to the tune of Eur 194,000 and was led by Dr Ing. Jason Gauci from the Institute of Aerospace Technologies at the University of Malta, in collaboration with and .
The aim of the project was to develop enabling technologies for engineless aircraft taxiing using autonomous tow trucks. This method of taxiing is more energy-efficient than the conventional method of taxiing (which relies on the aircraft’s main engines to generate thrust) and results in less fuel emissions and noise within the airport environment.
The dissemination event began with an overview of the SATMET project and a presentation of the key SATMET outcomes, including technologies for obstacle detection, taxiway line detection, taxi optimisation, and human machine interaction. Then, an interactive panel discussion – focusing on engineless aircraft taxiing and other green airport technologies – was held with the participation of a number of aviation experts from industry and academia.
This discussion was followed by keynote speeches by the CEO of MCST, Dr Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando, and the Minister for Research, Innovation and the Co-Ordination of Post COVID-19 Strategy, Hon. Owen Bonnici, who concluded the event. Following the event, a networking lunch was held at ESPLORA.
The event was well-attended by the Maltese aviation and research community, including representatives of the airline community, the air navigation service provider, Malta International Airport, MCST, Malta Enterprise, the Civil Aviation Directorate, the University of Malta, and the press.
SATMET (R&I-2016-033V) was financed by the Malta Council for Science & Technology, for and on behalf of the Foundation for Science and Technology, through the FUSION: R&I Technology Development Programme.
