Rugged data storage systems for aerospace and defense applications are moving to new data interfaces for unparalleled speed and capacity, while trusted computing and information security are driving trends.

In the coming years, the military avionics supply and demand chain will feature advanced cockpit upgrades and integration capabilities with civil airspace, as countries move forward on urban air mobility concepts and as the use of drones becomes increasingly common.

Efficient execution is key to real-time mission-critical operating systems software, yet new demands are emerging such as safety-critical operations for avionics and other life-critical applications.

Prototype designs for the Future Vertical Lift (FVL) program, one of the U.S. Army’s most important and game-changing initiatives, are fully embracing the open architecture design philosophy for the next-generation helicopters that will replace its fleet of OH58 Kiowa Warrior, AH64 Apache, and UH60 Black Hawk rotorcraft.

Aviation cybersecurity mandates by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are coming in the next two years.

With faster processors, more functions, and higher bandwidth than ever before, today’s avionics are pushing the cooling technology envelope to the breaking point – and beyond.

The use of fiber optics is gaining momentum in modern avionics because it helps solve the size, weight and power (SWaP) challenges in next generation system designs.

Thanks to parallel advancements in battery technology and autonomous vehicles resulting from Tesla and other pioneering electric automobile manufacturers, we are rapidly approaching the era of the unmanned flying taxi.