FlyChams: an open-source platform for large-scale photorealistic aerial simulation
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17979/ja-cea.2026.47.13824Keywords:
Flying robots, Work in real and virtual environments, Human operator support, Perception and sensing, Multi-vehicle systems, Networks of robots and intelligent sensorsAbstract
Photorealistic simulation is essential for aerial robotics research, particularly for perception tasks involving multi-vehicle systems. However, the current open-source simulation paradigm falls short; benchmark platforms have either been discontinued or transitioned to closed-source models, such as AirSim ---now AirGen---. Meanwhile, newer alternatives based on Isaac Sim remain immature for aerial fleets. This work introduces FlyChams, a high-performance, self-hosted, open-source simulation platform. Built on Unreal Engine 5 and a custom fork of AirSim, it is governed by the PX4 autopilot and integrated with ROS 2. Its design accommodates demanding scenarios ---including multiple agents, numerous simultaneous video streams, and high resolutions--- thanks to a hardware-accelerated streaming layer. Finally, we present a search and rescue mission to demonstrate the platform's capabilities and evaluate its scalability.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Jose Francisco López Ruiz, Francisco José Mañas Álvarez, Manuel Vargas
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