Landing on your back porch? In close proximity to trees? And near your grandmother? :)
We produced documentation regarding the 'Precision Landing' developments (link). The primary intent of this development is to enable more industrial use-cases for multi-copters, namely, fully automated systems with auto re-charge capabilities. However, it is also useful for assisting manual landings in tight spaces. I typically would not attempt to land on my patio, near a house, under a tree, and on a table.
The assisted landing uses a Sensor/Beacon system (link) to center the IRIS+ over the IR Beacon when in Loiter or Land flight modes. In the above video, we are using a modified version of AC3.2.1 which uses readings from the Sensor/Beacon system. In short, if the Sensor detects the Beacon, the copter will hover over the Beacon. If the Beacon is not detected, the copter operates as expected in Loiter/Land.
Loitering over a Beacon is demonstrated in the video below.
Randy shot a very nice video of a precision landing. This development will not be in the AC3.3 master. We are still experimenting .... Also, note that the 3.3-based version (demonstrated below) is somewhat different than the 3.2.1 version. You can read more about it here (link).
I am also curious about the use-cases for fixed wings. We have had requests about this, but my knowledge on the matter is limited. Feel free to shoot me a message (thomas at irlock dot com), or reply below.