BAE secures certification of active inceptors for G500 and G600 planes

UK-based aerospace company BAE Systems has secured certification of its active inceptors for Gulfstream’s G600 and G500 aircraft.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has approved the inceptor for G600 aircraft while the European Aviation Safety Agency for G500 aircraft.

The company has obtained the certification for the technology in civil applications for the second time. Last year, the inceptors were certified on Gulfstream’s G500 aircraft for the first time.

BAE Systems Controls and Avionics Solutions vice-president and general manager Ehtisham Siddiqui said: “Our active inceptors will provide pilots of these aircraft with increased situational awareness and enable enhanced handling to maintain a safe and stable flight of Gulfstream’s G500 and G600 aircraft.”

Active inceptors are part of the controls that pilots use when flying an aircraft.

The active inceptors are equipped with electronically controlled actuators to transmit tactile feedback to the pilot through the joystick.

It can also provide alerts on incoming structural or aerodynamic operating limits to the pilot.

BAE Systems has been manufacturing active inceptor technology for more than 25 years.

The company also developed the technology’s military version for the Joint Strike Fighter programme in the 1990s.

The technology has logged more than 200,000 flight hours and been used on 12 commercial and military aircraft worldwide.

Earlier this year, BAE Systems performed flight trials of the Magma unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).