Abstract
This paper proposes FLUC, a modular framework that integrates open-source Large Language Models (LLMs) with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) autopilot systems to enable autonomous control in Flying Networks (FNs). FLUC translates high-level natural language commands into executable UAV mission code, bridging the gap between operator intent and UAV behaviour. FLUC is evaluated using three open-source LLMs - Qwen 2.5, Gemma 2, and LLaMA 3.2 - across scenarios involving code generation and mission planning. Results show that Qwen 2.5 excels in multi-step reasoning, Gemma 2 balances accuracy and latency, and LLaMA 3.2 offers faster responses with lower logical coherence. A case study on energy-aware UAV positioning confirms FLUC's ability to interpret structured prompts and autonomously execute domain-specific logic, showing its effectiveness in real-time, mission-driven control.

Abstract
The increasing complexity of wireless technologies, such as Wi-Fi, presents significant challenges for Rate Adaptation (RA) due to the large configuration space of transmission parameters. While extensive research has been conducted on RA for low-mobility networks, existing solutions fail to adapt in Flying Networks (FNs), where high mobility and dynamic wireless conditions introduce additional uncertainty. We propose Linear Upper Confidence Bound for RA (LinRA), a novel Contextual Bandit-based approach that leverages real-time link context to optimize transmission rates in predictable FNs, where future trajectories are known. Simulation results demonstrate that LinRA converges $\mathbf {5.2\times }$ faster than benchmarks and improves throughput by 80% in Non Line-of-Sight conditions, matching the performance of ideal algorithms.

Abstract

Abstract
Flying Networks (FNs) have emerged as a promising solution to provide on-demand wireless connectivity when network coverage is insufficient or the communications infrastructure is compromised, such as in disaster management scenarios. Despite extensive research on Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) positioning and radio resource allocation, the challenge of ensuring reliable traffic relay through backhaul links in predictive FNs remains unexplored. This work proposes Simulated Annealing for predictive FNs (SAFnet), an innovative algorithm that optimizes network performance under positioning constraints, limited bandwidth and minimum rate requirements. Our algorithm uniquely leverages prior knowledge of the first-tier node trajectories to assign bandwidth and dynamically adjust the position of the second-tier flying relay. Building upon Simulated Annealing, our approach enhances this well-known AI algorithm with penalty functions, achieving performance levels comparable to exhaustive search while significantly reducing computational complexity.

Abstract
The increasing complexity of recent Wi-Fi amendments is making the use of traditional algorithms and heuristics unfeasible to address the Rate Adaptation (RA) problem. This is due to the large combination of configuration parameters along with the high variability of the wireless channel. Recently, several works have proposed the usage of Reinforcement Learning (RL) techniques to address the problem. However, the proposed solutions lack sufficient technical explanation. Also, the lack of standard frameworks enabling the reproducibility of results and the limited availability of source code, makes the fair comparison with state of the art approaches a challenge. This paper proposes a framework, named RateRL, that integrates state of the art libraries with the well-known Network Simulator 3 (ns-3) to enable the implementation and evaluation of RL-based RA algorithms. To the best of our knowledge, RateRL is the first tool available to assist researchers during the implementation, validation and evaluation phases of RL-based RA algorithms and enable the fair comparison between competing algorithms.