Amit Ganjoo is a serial entrepreneur and Founder and CEO of ANRA Technologies, an Award Winning Drone Operations and UAS Traffic Managment Platform provider based in Washington DC.  The company’s platform is used by multiple commercial and government entities for running and managing commercial drone operations.

As advance air mobility efforts accelerate and the use of air taxis becomes a reality, vertiport design and operation is becoming a paramount concern, especially when considering scaling up to meet service demands across many cities and regions.  ANRA Technologies is at the forefront of this discussion with their innovative Vertiport Management System, which integrates disparate data into a single platform to seamless manage the integration and operation of a vertiport.

Amit has over 20 years of aviation, telecom and wireless experience in both the federal and the commercial space. He is an engineer, a licensed pilot, following a lifelong passion in aviation and builds experimental aircrafts.

Until December 2016, he acted as the co-chair for FCC’s Technical Advisory Council (TAC) for 5G and IoT, which included ground and airborne autonomous vehicles. He was the Director of Engineering at and Principal Architect at Ericsson, providing telecom solutions to commercial customers and Federal Government, where he was the recipient of the Athena Award. He was also the Founder and CEO of a Mobile Marketing company from which he had a successful exit in 2009.

Deployed as part of the Expeditionary Strike Group, he was chief system architect for Navy 4G LTE Sea Pilot, delivering a one of a kind turn-key, secure, unmanned airborne/afloat autonomous 4G LTE Network with applications to directly support the war fighter. He architected the first ever approved classified security architecture for 4G LTE in line with NSA Commercial Solutions for Classified (CSfC) framework, approved for operational deployment in DoD in 2012.

Amit is also an adjunct professor at the George Mason University and shares his passion for engineering by teaching in the School of Engineering and volunteers at a local Maker Space in the D.C. area.

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Amit talks about ANRA Technologies’ Vertiport Management System and how it will help local communities and AAM providers scale up to meet demand.

Eric Allison is Chief Product Officer at Joby Aviation.    Joby builds quiet, all-electric aircraft to connect people like never before.  With up to 150 miles of range and the ability to take off and land vertically, the Joby aircraft will change the way people move while reducing the acoustic and climate footprint of flight.

Their long-term vision is to build a global passenger service that helps the world connect with the people and places that matter most, while helping to protect our precious planet. As well as strategic partnerships with Toyota, Delta, Uber, and many more, Joby has a team of more than 1400 engineers and experts working to bring aerial ridesharing to our skies.

Prior to joining Joby, Eric led the Elevate team at Uber, developing software tools that built on more than a decade of experience enabling on-demand mobility. His experience in aerospace research, electric propulsion, energy storage, vehicle autonomy, and composite structures led him to the CEO position at Zee Aero, where he spearheaded the development of Cora, an autonomous air taxi vehicle. Eric holds a PhD in Ae ronautics and Astronautics from Stanford, an MS in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Stanford, and a BS from the Milwaukee School of Engineering.

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Eric talks about Joby Aviation, their revolutionary EVTOL Air Taxi and the not-too-distant future of urban air mobility service.

How is Honeywell Positioned to Serve the Advance Air Mobility Market

For that question, we head to Phoenix to speak with David Shilliday, Vice President and General Manager of the Unmanned Aerial Systems and Urban Air Mobility business unit at Honeywell Aerospace. Honeywell’s UAS business develops new products and serves as a systems integrator for both airframe makers and operators in this fast evolving market. Its area of responsibility spans aircraft systems like avionics, electric and hybrid electric propulsion and thermal management; flight services such as unmanned air traffic management; and ground operations services such as predictive maintenance analytics.  In November, Honeywell announced its Advanced Air Mobility business unit had secured contracts worth over $10 billion to build advance air mobility components, signifying the growth of AMM as a viable commercial sector for years to come.

David has been with Honeywell for over 18 years. Prior to his current role in the Advance Air Mobility Unit, David held several key leadership positions within the company, including Vice President and General Manager for the Power Systems business of Honewell and Vice President of EMEAI Airlines.  He also led the Honeywell Aerospace Trading (HAT) business, as well as roles leading Aftermarket strategy and IP Licensing. Prior to joining Honeywell David had roles in Engineering and IP strategy within the commercial automotive market.  He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Arizona and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the WP Carey school at Arizona State University. David also holds a number of patents on innovative automotive safety technology and has published cooperative research in the field.

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, David talks about Honeywell’s Advance Air Mobility Unit, it’s recent award of $10 billion in AAM related contracts and what this means for the future of advanced air mobility.

How is cutting-edge radar technology shaping the future of drones and advanced air mobility?

Tom Driscoll is CTO and Founder of Echodyne, a Seattle startup bringing breakthrough radar capability to meet commercial and defense needs across autonomy, security, and intelligence markets.  At Echodyne, Tom leads the company’s world-class R&D efforts.  Prior to Echodyne, Tom was Managing Director of the Metamaterials Commercialization Center at Intellectual Ventures, the technology incubator which launched the world’s first metamaterials-enabled ventures.  Recognized as a  technologist, inventor, and entrepreneur with a drive to advance the art of the possible, Tom is a named inventor on over 100 patents, has co-founded five startups, and serves on the board of directors of three.  He holds a PhD in physics from University of California San Diego, a B.S. in Physics from Harvey Mudd, and is an adjunct professor at Duke University.

In this edition of the Drone Radio Show, Tom talks about Echodyne’s innovative radar sensors and how they’re used in the drone industry, most notably to support advance air mobility.

Philip Butterworth-Hayes is publisher and editor of Unmanned Airspace.info, the world’s first internet-based information portal dedicated to the global community of UTM and C-UAS system providers and operators.  The site provides daily news on UTM and C-UAS development and deployments, alongside a glossary of system providers and current plans of states and agencies to deploy systems worldwide.

Philip has extensive experience as a consultant and writer specializing in air traffic management, aviation safety, military and civil aviation issues. He was formerly Managing Editor of Jane’s Transport Press and editor of Jane’s Airport Review, Jane’s World Airlines, Jane’s Defense Industries and Jane’s Aircraft Component Manufacturers.

He has been the Director of Communications and Strategy at the Civil Air Navigation Services Organization in Amsterdam and is currently the editor of Skyway, the official journal of EUROCONTROL, the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation.

He is the editorial director of PMI Media Limited, specialist contract publishers for the defense and aerospace industries, whose clients have included the European Defense Agency and Airbus Defense and Space. He is also a regular contributor on ATM and aviation safety issues to global broadcast and print media, including the BBC, CNN and the Wall Street Journal.

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Philip highlights five trends shaping urban air mobility today and he talks about some of the communities that are leading the way in air mobility.

Can autonomous drones be deployed in urban areas?

Reese Mozer is President of Ondas Holdings and CEO and Co-Founder of American Robotics.  Ondas Holdings is a leading provider of private wireless data and commercial drone solutions.  The Wireless data solutions are provided via Ondas Networks.  The commercial drone solutions are provided through American Robotics and newly acquired Airobotics.  Together, American Robotics and Airobotics design, develop, and market autonomous commercial drone solutions worldwide.  Their  Scout System and Optimus System are highly automated, AI-powered drone systems capable of continuous, remote operation.  American Robotics has also led with regulatory successes, becoming the first company approved by the FAA to operate automated drones without humans on site. 

Right after being acquired by Ondas Holdings, Airobotics announced a $3.5M purchase order and joint venture with SkyGo, a UAE-based company that has a commercial license to provide unmanned aerial transport of goods and services across the city of Abu Dhabi.  With this partnership in place, the companies will move forward in launching a first-of-its-kind deployment of Urban Drone Infrastructure throughout Abu Dhabi.  The project will serve as the autonomous UAS model for the rest of the world, especially in major cities. 

Reese is an accomplished entrepreneur, executive, and technologist, with over 12 years of experience in the drone, robotics, and private equity sectors. He also serves as a Board member of the Commercial Drone Alliance.  Reese has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe, Business Insider, TechCrunch, Gizmodo, Venture Beat, and CNBC, among other national publications. He holds a Master’s in Robotic Systems Development from Carnegie Mellon University and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and Entrepreneurship from the University of Southern California.

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Reese talks about American Robotics & Airobotics autonomous drone solutions, the Urban Drone Infrastructure project for Abu Dhabi and what we can expect to see in the way of global adoption of autonomous drone solutions.

Where will future advanced aerial mobility vehicles take off and land?

Damian Kysely is Head of EMEA at Skyports.  Skyports designs, builds, owns, and operates networks of vertiports.  The advent of electric vertical take off and landing aircraft opens the potential of urban air transport. Vertiports are the dedicated ground infrastructure that help realize this future. This is where Skyports excels.  The Company is the world’s leading vertiport provider and operator, enabling safe and efficient urban air transport in major markets around the globe.

At Skyports, Damian is responsible for developing and implementing global infrastructure strategy by working with real estate partners, city authorities, regulators and passenger vehicle manufacturers.

Prior to joining Skyports, Damian co-founded and ran Skyscape Technologies, a UK government-backed data analytics start-up identifying disused rooftop potential. He is also a Founding Partner at The Aviary Project, a collaborative platform and community for the Aerial Mobility industry. After his studies, Damian joined a transport technology consultancy in London and managed an early stage start-up accelerator programme in Manchester.

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Damian talks about Skyports, vertiports, and current vertiports projects in Singapore, Florida and Europe.

How is Texas Advancing Urban Air Mobility?

Michael Hill is CEO and Founder of Cumulus Technologies, a drone technology company based in the Dallas / Ft. Worth area.  Michael is one of the top subject matter experts in the areas of Advanced Air Mobility and their integration on the land, in the air and at sea. He is a Part 107 Pilot with over 1,980 hours of flight time, a consultant helping companies use Drones and Ai to create safer, more efficient working environments and has helped NASA and the FAA develop Unmanned Traffic Management protocols for our National Airspace.

In 2021, the Texas Legislature passed SB 763 – which established a new committee charged with identifying potential changes in state regulations  needed to facilitate the development of Urban Air Mobility operations and infrastructure in Texas.  The committee must report its finding and recommendations Texas Transportation Commission and legislature by Sept. 1, 2022.

Michael is a member of the Texas Urban Air Mobility Advisory Committee and has been working with other committee members, industry leaders and the Texas legislature in implementing SB 763.

In this edition of the Drone Radio Show, Michael talks about SB 763 and the Urban Air Mobility Advisory Committee, the efforts by the State of Texas and the North Central Texas Council of Governments to promote urban air mobility, and how Texas is positioning itself to be a leader in advance air mobility systems.