US-based MissionGO, a provider of unmanned aviation solutions, and Nevada Donor Network, an organ procurement organization (OPO) serving the state of Nevada, have announced two successful test flights carrying a human organ and tissue via a UAS on 17 September, 2020.
Longest organ delivery via UAS
The second flight, which delivered a research kidney from the Searchlight Airport (1L3) to a location outside of the town of Cal-Nev-Ari, marked the longest organ delivery flight in UAS history. This flight surpassed the distance of a historic flight in April 2019 when MissionGO team members Anthony Pucciarella and Ryan Henderson, in their roles at the University of Maryland UAS Test Site and in partnership with the University of Maryland Medical Center, delivered the first kidney by UAS that was then successfully transplanted into a patient.
MissionGO chose Searchlight Airport (1L3) as an appropriate location for organ delivery testing because of its unique environment. The sparsely populated area, wide open terrain, class G airspace, flexible access, and unparalleled support from Praxis Aerospace Concepts International make this an ideal testing ground.
The staff and personnel from Praxis Aerospace Concepts International make operating unmanned aircraft here easy and safe for all types of UAS.
Read more about this flight in the original press release here, at Air and Rescue’s article here, follow the updates on Linkedin here, or on Twitter here.
Contact Searchlight Center here for more information, or call 702-586-1160 to schedule.