OCTOBER 17, 2026 08:43

HeliStream, a California helicopter operator, plans to install collision avoidance systems from Israeli startup Ciconia on its fleet after a successful August 2026 test in San Bernardino County before firefighting officials from across the nation.

The trial in the nation's largest county by area evaluated Ciconia's Collision and Conflict Avoidance System in mixed helicopter and drone operations within busy airspace, focusing on firefighting and emergency tasks.

Rising numbers of helicopters, drones and unmanned craft sharing limited airspace have heightened safety issues for emergency crews. Ness Ziona-based Ciconia created a decentralized system that spots threats and computes safe avoidance paths for pilots.

"Several aircraft from various groups flying together over a limited zone creates high risk," said Col. (res.) Moshe Cohen, Ciconia's CEO and co-founder.

Cohen, a former Israeli Air Force attack helicopter pilot, built a team of aviation and tech experts after his service. Leadership features Lt.-Col. (res.) Dr. Ilan Zohar as chief technology officer with drone control expertise, and Lt.-Col. (res.) Gil Yanai, a past IAF test pilot and Flight Test Center commander who also captains El Al Boeing 787s and serves as Ciconia's vice president of business development.

The group further includes Lt.-Col. (res.) Eran Bar-On heading algorithms and flight testing, Lt.-Col. (res.) Eran Nir a former IAF Yasur captain and El Al Boeing 787 pilot, operations manager Ronen Stofman a past IAF flight test engineer, and software engineer Misha Poyarkov.

California helicopter pilot evaluates Israeli collision avoidance system

Andreas Moser, HeliStream's chief pilot with 34 years at the firm, took part in the Southern California tests.

HeliStream runs a varied helicopter fleet for training, utility work, power line inspections and aerial firefighting. These roles now often require multiple aircraft in restricted airspace alongside reconnaissance planes, water bombers and observation drones.

Moser jokes about his broad experience, noting he flies "everything from a small Robinson R22 to a Sikorsky Black Hawk."

Over 200 civilian Black Hawks serve in the United States, mainly for firefighting with specialized tanks or buckets. Israel's National Security Ministry has sought three similar helicopters to bolster its firefighting fleet.

Moser, who routinely works in Southern California's dense skies, views collision avoidance as a key operational hurdle.

"We operate in one of the world's busiest airspaces," he said. "Helicopters follow visual flight rules, placing collision avoidance on the pilot. For a single-pilot crew this demands huge focus and energy that should go to flying and the mission."

Drones increase risks for aerial firefighting

Moser noted that growing drone activity near wildfires adds safety concerns for emergency aircraft.

Some drones belong to agencies mapping fires, while others come from unauthorized civilians watching the scene.

"Any sighting of a drone halts all firefighting flights until its position is verified or it departs," Moser said.

"Fires near Los Angeles have threatened buildings yet flights stopped over drone concerns. We have even seen a firefighting aircraft collide with a drone locally."

Moser cautioned that such a strike on a helicopter could prove severe.

"A hit on a Robinson or Black Hawk could down the aircraft or cause major damage ending the flight at once," he said.

The risk was highlighted on August 2, 2026, when two firefighting helicopters collided near Athens, Greece, during wildfire response. One crashed killing its two crew while the other crew survived.

Standard warning systems fall short for helicopters

Aviation has long used ADS-B and TCAS to boost awareness and cut midair collision risks.

Moser said traditional systems often fail to give helicopter pilots the needed details during low-altitude work with many nearby aircraft.

"ADS-B works well but only shows a target exists," he said. "It does not indicate if the traffic threatens me or suggest an escape path if risk appears."

"With four or five aircraft nearby, ADS-B cannot identify which poses the immediate issue."

Alert volume can distract during training or firefighting with several helicopters close together.

"In training or crowded airspace with seven or eight aircraft we sometimes must disable the system," Moser said. "Constant beeping prevents distinguishing targets, forcing reliance on visual scanning."

He added that ground-based monitoring and air traffic control can suffer from limited radar coverage in mountainous or remote wildfire zones.

Israeli CCAS supplies pilots with avoidance guidance

Ciconia's system tackles these gaps via decentralized detection and avoidance algorithms independent of central air traffic control.

"Ciconia's strength lies in avoiding reliance on central management," Moser explained. "You can operate remotely and still detect any ADS-B equipped aircraft."

More crucially, the technology separates harmless nearby traffic from paths that could lead to collision.

"Ciconia indicates which targets matter because they climb toward you, approach head-on or descend in your direction," he said.

Unlike alert-only systems, CCAS generates a specific evasive maneuver while accounting for surrounding aircraft.

"Many systems flag issues yet also warn when no real danger exists," Moser said.

"Spotting problems is easy. Isolating only true dangers, catching all of them and offering a workable safe solution is the hard part."

"Ciconia supplies not just a warning but a maneuver plan that prevents one avoidance from creating another risk."

California test surpasses pilot expectations

Moser flew the system in August scenarios mimicking firefighting and dense helicopter ops.

"The test surpassed all expectations," he said.

"One case involved a radio misunderstanding causing an aircraft to turn incorrectly. The system instantly detected the shift, recalculated and offered a safer route."

"Its rapid response to proximity and direction changes proved impressive."

Gil Yanai, Ciconia's chief test pilot, said the demo covered police and firefighting scenarios mixing helicopters and drones. The team also simulated the Greece collision event.

"The system let pilots work freely," Yanai said. "They operated normally while airspace stayed safe. When a real threat arose the system showed the needed evasive action at once."

The test used a large drone from San Bernardino County Fire equipped with CCAS alongside a unit on Moser's Robinson helicopter.

"We showed helicopters and drones can share airspace safely when CCAS prevents dangerous approaches," Yanai said.

"On a collision threat CCAS alerts the drone operator. If needed it then takes drone control to divert. If danger persists it issues flight instructions to the helicopter pilot."

Instructions reach pilots via intercom and cockpit display, reducing distraction from primary tasks.

Pilot workload drives many fatal helicopter incidents

Need for better collision tools has grown after recent fatal firefighting accidents.

Moser cited a U.S. collision between a Sikorsky Skycrane and Bell 407 that killed the smaller aircraft's crew, plus the Greece incident.

"These are top pilots who aim to complete missions and return home," he said.

"Why do such events occur? Overload is the cause."

Moser explained that firefighting crews juggle smoke, winds, turbulence, water drops and nearby aircraft movements at once.

"The brain focuses so heavily on fire, smoke, wind and turbulence that nearby aircraft become normalized and no longer register as threats," he said.

He likened this to power line accidents where pilots see obstacles yet fail to react due to workload.

"When fighting fire the main goal must remain firefighting," Moser said. "Once collision avoidance overtakes that goal effectiveness drops."

HeliStream set to adopt Ciconia system

After the successful demo HeliStream intends to equip its aircraft with CCAS, though purchase details, quantities and timelines remain undisclosed.

Moser said rising complexity in firefighting keeps midair collision risk as his top worry, ahead of mechanical or engine issues.

"I support this fully," he said. "My greatest concern is not engine failure or complex mechanical problems."

"My top worry now and ahead, with more fires plus more helicopters and drones aloft, is nearing another aircraft dangerously."

"That threat stands largest. Ciconia's CCAS delivers a genuine affordable fix to a vital issue. We at HeliStream look forward to it."