Sagetech Avionics Inc., a U.S. aerospace technology company providing industry-leading situational awareness solutions for crewed and uncrewed aerial systems, and Ciconia LTD, an Israeli company focused on collision avoidance systems for aerial platforms, jointly announced that the Israel-U.S. Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD) Homeland Security (HLS) program awarded a $1 million grant to the Sagetech-Ciconia team funding the development of a mid-air conflict management and collision avoidance system for first responders and other aerial platforms.
“Sagetech is delighted to have been chosen for this BIRD Foundation grant. We’ve been working with Ciconia on a crowded airspace collision avoidance system, and this program fits very well with our intended collaboration. Together, we will be developing a unique mid-air conflict management system which marries both of our current technologies to create a solution for safe integration of crewed and uncrewed air vehicles in very dense airspace. This grant will help accelerate a critical technology development and advance a powerful international partnership,” remarked Tom Furey, CEO of Sagetech Avionics.
Ciconia develops innovations that enable safe flight for all flying platforms, leveraging the founders’ deep military and commercial flight experience to create intuitive prioritization and conflict management methods. “There is a significant opportunity for first responder organizations to use both crewed and uncrewed vehicles to improve flight safety, response time and effectiveness. Our partnership with Sagetech will enable us to jointly develop and commercialize a far more efficient means of employing all airborne assets in critical situations,” explained Moshe Cohen, Ciconia’s CEO.
The BIRD HLS program is focusing this year’s awards on cutting-edge aerial safety and emergency communications system solutions to enhance first responder capabilities.