PTERA ( Prototype-Technology Evaluation Research Aircraft), fixed-wing drone, Area-I, Inc., Kennesaw, Georgia, USA

This video highlights the initial testing of the Prototype Technology Evaluation Research Aircraft (PTERA) at the Middle Georgia College Aviation Campus at Heart of Georgia Regional Airport in July 2012.

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This video highlights the flight testing of the Prototype Technology Evaluation Research Aircraft (PTERA) at Cochran Airport in Cochran Georgia in August 2014. The purpose of these flights were to evaluate the effectiveness of autopilot control.

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Aerospace testing can be costly and time consuming but a new modular, subscale remotely piloted aircraft offers NASA researchers more affordable options for developing a wide range of cutting edge aviation and space technologies.

The Prototype-Technology Evaluation and Research Aircraft (PTERA), developed by Area-I, Inc., of Kennesaw, Georgia, is an extremely versatile and high quality, yet inexpensive, flying laboratory bridging the gap between wind tunnels and crewed flight testing.

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NASA conducted a series of flight tests as part of the Spanwise Adaptive Wing project (SAW) using a subscale UAV called Prototype Technology-Evaluation Research Aircraft (PTERA), provided by Area-I. The flight tests took place at NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center, California, in December 2017. The ability to fold wings to the ideal position of various flight conditions may produce several aerodynamic benefits for both subsonic and supersonic aircraft.

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