Building innovative capability for North Australia
Our Mission is to enhance the success of all our stakeholders through the safe adoption of emerging technologies and trusted autonomy.
Located at Charles Darwin University, the North Australia Centre for Autonomous Systems (NACAS) brings together internationally recognised research capabilities, cutting-edge infrastructure, and extensive technical and operational expertise.
What we do
Build partnerships and training that grow sovereign capability, local expertise, and a skilled workforce.
Accelerate the safe adoption and end-to-end deployment of Uncrewed Aerial Systems (UAS) and other autonomous technologies.
Translate research into scalable impact across multiple sectors, driving regional growth and resilience.
Why work with us?
Headquartered in the Northern Territory, we excel at long‑distance drone operations in Australia’s most demanding remote landscapes. Our diverse team combines intimate local knowledge with a robust grasp of aviation policy, extensive UAS engineering and piloting capability. This is integrated with world-class facilities and a proven foundation in applied research and hands‑on training.
We act as a conduit between the global emerging technology industry and sectors significant to the North Australia economy, environment, and livelihoods.
Foreword from the Director
Welcome to the North Australia Centre for Autonomous Systems.
Emerging autonomous technologies, such as drones and artificial intelligence, hold extraordinary potential to address Australia’s most pressing problems today. They can extend healthcare to remote communities, help prevent and fight forest fires, secure borders and coastlines, and guide land management for agriculture and environmental stewardship, among many other applications. The opportunity is evident, but turning it into reality requires more than innovation alone.
Successful, safe, and sustainable UAS adoption demands expertise in aviation policy and regulation, a skilled and capable workforce, trusted collaboration with local, regional, and Indigenous communities, proactive government support, strong industry partnerships, hands-on operational experience, and rigorous testing and research.
NACAS brings world-class expertise across these domains. We build and collaborate with our partners and stakeholders to address the multifaceted challenges that arise when technology advances faster than the support systems can keep pace. The outcome of our endeavours is the safe adoption and implementation of emerging technologies across a broad range of sectors across remote and regional Australia.
Prof. Hamish Campbell
CENTRE DIRECTOR
Our Partners
