Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1499169
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 14 MAY 2023 5 SCIENCE Local R & I project provides AI solutions to help pilots in case of automation failure THE results of SmartAP, a pro- ject led by the the Institute of Aerospace Technologies at the University of Malta and was carried out in collaboration with QuAero Ltd., a local avi- ation consultancy company were disseminated during a public engagement event held on Wednesday, the 10th of May at the EsploraPlanetarium Hall, Kalkara. Smart Artificial Pilot devel- oped solutions based on Arti- ficial Intelligence (AI) to help pilots understand better what is happening in order to be in a better position to recover the airplane if the automation fails. The project specifically ad- dressed two main areas of con- cern during flight: loss of con- trol (due to aerodynamic stalls) and loss of situation awareness. The project received circa €200,000 under the Fusion the national R & I funding pro- gramme, administered by the Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST). Current large transport air- planes – such as those manu- factured by Airbus and Boeing – are equipped with advanced automation that flies and man- ages the airplane throughout a flight. As a result, the role of pilots is increasingly becoming that of overseeing this automa- tion and of taking over if the automation fails. The project idea came about in response to the increase in the complexity of automation and the over-re- liance of pilots on it resulting in a disconnect between pilots and the airplane, which has contributed to a number of fa- tal accidents. The Parliamentary Secretary for Youth, Research and Inno- vation Keith Azzopardi Tanti said that this is another step that brings people closer to technology. He stated "Tech- nology is a tool that we must go with and try to adapt it to give us help in the weakest things that we have or that hinder us, as in fact is this Smart Artificial Pilot that will offer the neces- sary assistance to all pilots so that through Artificial Intelli- gence they have more peace of mind in stressful situations." The Parliamentary Secretary ended his speech by thanking all those who were involved in this project and expressed the wish that more researchers fol- low in their footsteps. MCST Chairman, Dr. To- nio Portughese said that: "the Malta Council for Science and Technology, will continue playing the important role it has been playing to date, ex- ploring incentives and meas- ures in the areas of Research and Innovation." He added that MCST will continue to serve as the catalyst, through its funding programmes and through active involvement, to bring together our educational institutions with players from the private sector in synergy for the achievement of their mutually desired goals. Dr Ing. Jason Gauci, co-in- vestigator of SmartAP said: "SmartAP has demonstrated some of the benefits that Ar- tificial Intelligence can bring to the cockpit, and has shown that AI can assist pilots in var- ious scenarios. As AI becomes more sophisticated we can ex- pect it to play a bigger role, not only in the cockpit but in the entire aviation ecosystem." FUSION is a national fund- ing programme that drives and supports local Research and Innovation (R&I), as well as providing the necessary sup- port for researchers and tech- nologists to turn their innova- tive ideas into a market-ready reality. FUSION is supported through Malta Government funds and is managed by the Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST) as the Managing Authority. Hon. Keith Azzopardi Tanti