SoftBank Corp. has announced the successful use of its solar-powered uncrewed aircraft system (UAS), "Sunglider," in a field trial conducted by AeroVironment Inc. and the U.S. Department of Defense in New Mexico, USA, in August 2024.
During the trial, the Sunglider achieved stratospheric flight. The Sunglider, designed for High Altitude Platform Station (HAPS) telecommunications, is larger than other publicly announced HAPS UAS, boasting a wingspan of 78 meters and the ability to carry payloads up to 75 kilograms. This enhanced version of the Sunglider demonstrated improvements in structural and functional performance, with the goal of delivering stable, high-speed, and robust mobile connectivity from the stratosphere.
SoftBank’s development partner, AeroVironment, deployed the jointly developed Sunglider in a recent field trial with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). The trial successfully demonstrated the Sunglider's multi-payload capability and stratospheric flight, meeting DoD requirements. It also provided SoftBank with valuable insights for future advancements in aircraft design.
Through this operation, SoftBank validated performance improvements in the latest Sunglider model and plans to use the trial data to further enhance future aircraft development.
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Junichi Miyakawa, President & CEO of SoftBank Corp., said, “SoftBank began its HAPS program in 2017 as a global pioneer, and since then has been leading the industry in research and development, field trials, standardization and other activities to realize HAPS-based services. For our aircraft platform, we've been working with our partner, AeroVironment, to develop Sunglider, an industry-leading, large-scale HAPS aircraft. The HAPS service we're aiming to provide will offer high-speed, high-capacity, high-quality, and stable communications that is only possible with a large-scale aircraft."
He expressed satisfaction with the successful verification of Sunglider's performance improvements during the field trial, noting its significant potential. Looking ahead, the focus will remain on achieving further advancements, including long-duration flights and optical wireless communications. Building on the trial's success, efforts will be accelerated toward the commercialization of HAPS.
SoftBank plans to continue its research and development (R&D) in the HAPS sector, with a focus on addressing the global digital divide, providing emergency communication during disasters, and tackling other societal challenges.
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