Pierce Aerospace to Construct Distant ID Community for NASA Throughout Silicon Valley and Bay Space
Metis Expertise Options faucets the Indiana agency to deploy YR1 and YR2S sensors supporting NASA’s drone and air taxi analysis at Ames.
Pierce Aerospace will construct a Distant ID community for NASA throughout Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Space. Metis Expertise Options chosen the Fishers, Indiana agency to deploy the sensors. The businesses introduced the deal on Might 7, 2026.
Metis is the prime contractor on NASA’s Aerospace Analysis Expertise and Simulation (ARTS) contract. The work helps the Air Visitors Administration and Security (ATMS) challenge and the Aeronautics Initiatives Workplace at NASA’s Ames Analysis Heart.
Pierce Aerospace’s Distant ID Community Goes Operational
Pierce Aerospace will subject its YR1 and YR2S Distant ID sensors in a layered, networked configuration. The deployment offers regional protection for a number of years.
Distant ID is the FAA’s requirement that drones broadcast a “digital license plate.” That information contains telemetry important for the detection, monitoring, and identification of uncrewed plane.
Pierce Aerospace started work on Distant ID in 2017. The corporate began fielding the know-how by U.S. Air Drive AFWERX SBIR awards in 2018. Earlier protection from Dronelife famous the agency has logged greater than 100 million Distant ID detections up to now.
“It’s an honor to help NASA’s cutting-edge analysis that’s on the forefront of evolving Air Visitors Administration and rising aviation applied sciences and plane by the Metis ARTS contract,” stated Aaron Pierce, CEO and co-founder of Pierce Aerospace. “Along with supporting NASA, this community of sensors could be made accessible to help airspace consciousness for industrial and public sector stakeholders.”
Supporting Drones, Air Taxis, and Wildfire Operations
NASA’s ATMS challenge sits contained in the broader Airspace Operations and Security Program. The work targets protected integration of drones, air taxis, and supersonic transports into the Nationwide Airspace System.
The sensor community will feed a number of NASA efforts:
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Air Visitors Administration and Security (ATMS): the digital spine for sharing the sky amongst package deal drones, air taxis, and industrial jets.
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Superior Air Mobility Pathfinder (AAMP): eVTOL air taxi work, BVLOS analysis, and the Superior Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations (ACERO) effort targeted on drone supply, wildfire response, and public security.
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Good Mobility: small UAS flight operations at Moffett Subject and past.
“Metis Expertise Options is proud to subject a Part III subcontract beneath the Small Enterprise Innovation Analysis (SBIR) program, establishing a partnership with Pierce Aerospace to ship a Distant ID sensor community that may speed up NASA’s airspace security and analysis mission throughout Silicon Valley, the Bay Space, and the Hollister Airspace Ecosystem,” stated Sig Lokensgard, ARTS Program Supervisor at Metis Expertise Options. “This deployment immediately helps NASA’s ATMS challenge and the broader objectives of the ARTS contract by enabling new ranges of airspace consciousness, information constancy, and operational perception.”
The award marks Pierce Aerospace’s third SBIR Part III contract beneath 15 U.S.C. 638 authorities.
Extra data is obtainable at Pierce Aerospace.
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Ian McNabb is a journalist specializing in drone know-how and way of life content material at Dronelife. He’s primarily based between Boston and NH and, when not writing, enjoys climbing and Boston space sports activities.