Achieving airspace integration

Vital for the next generation of aviation

We are on the verge of the biggest transformation in aviation since the advent of the jet engine.

The growth of Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) drones and advanced air mobility (AAM) is going to transform travel, logistics and a whole range of industries over the next decade. I say that based on the work that’s already been achieved and the foundations laid, even if much remains to be done.

To date, NATS has supported a number of BVLOS projects around the UK doing pioneering work, but that’s largely been through the use of segregated airspace to keep those operators away from conventional air traffic. Fundamentally, that is not a scalable or sustainable way of operating.

BVLOS drones are set to transform the logistics industry.

Flylogix is a company we support that performs environmental assessments of oil and gas rigs in the North Sea. A dangerous job that would usually mean chartering helicopters, this can now be done using remotely piloted drones while emitting a fraction of the CO2.

But what Flylogix and companies like them need is a way to grow. They need the industry to find a way to freely accommodate BVLOS - and AAM operators - and that means new regulations, new technologies and new ways of working. In short, it means airspace integration.

Flylogix are exploring how autonomous aircraft can work in remote operations

So, how do we unleash this potential while safeguarding existing airspace users?

NATS’ New Airspace Users roadmap aims to provide some of these answers, and is built around tenets of safety, equitability, innovation and the integration of all airspace users. While part of our vision is focussed on infrastructure and data sharing, another looks at the procedures needed to ensure safe integration. Our focus is on providing the infrastructure and concepts of operation. In short, we’re laying the foundations to get people flying.

NATS’ New Airspace Users roadmap aims to provide some of these answers, and is built around tenets of safety, equitability, innovation and the integration of all airspace users.

Last year marked a significant moment in that journey. Firstly, we saw NATS share a vision for the delivery of fundamental aeronautical and data sharing services called NATS OpenAir. Secondly, we saw breakthroughs in two projects as part of the UK Future Flight Challenge.

The Future Flight Challenge is a £125m UK Research and Innovation initiative aimed at stimulating the development of new aviation technologies, including drones and AAM. NATS is involved in several projects, but two in particular gave us a glimpse of the future.

In October, Project Caelus delivered a BVLOS drone flight out of Glasgow Airport – a quiet moment of aviation history and a demonstration that BVLOS operations are possible within controlled airspace at an international airport. Project Caelus could be a game changer for NHS patients in the remoter parts of Scotland.

Today, a 15-minute cancer treatment can take hours and involve a 70-mile journey by car and ferry. Routine drone deliveries could help change this, with supplies and samples delivered rapidly, within a time-controlled window with medical grade, temperature controlled and monitored packaging.

Behind the scenes, our teams were working to ensure the procedures were in place for the drone flight to happen safely. Alongside this, our analytics and R&D teams have been developing technology and simulation models to provide the evidence showing how this could be scaled. For regional airports in particular, this could present some exciting opportunities to diversify operations and one day become drone logistics hubs.

Our focus is on providing the infrastructure and concepts of operation. In short, we’re laying the foundations to get people flying.

Looking at Advanced Air Mobility, in December NATS ran the first large scale simulations of eVTOL flights within UK controlled airspace. This was the latest milestone for the Advanced Mobility Ecosystem Consortium, another Future Flight Challenge project aiming to prove the viability of AAM in the UK.

We simulated a number of eVTOL flights from Bristol Airport through the airspace around Farnborough, and then onto London City Airport. But what made these ground-breaking was the combination of new prototype technology and the creation of a new ‘Airspace Manager’ function.

Our teams created a new proposed concept of operations where eVTOL operators would file their flight plans via an app that could then be approved or amended within minutes. The vision is that each flight would be deconflicted from other aircraft on its route before even taking off, with the ‘Airspace Manager’ function monitoring from a digital ‘master control room’.

In this scenario, voice communication between eVTOL pilots and air traffic control would only be required by exception, and while the Airspace Manager function was fulfilled by a person during our simulations, it could one day be automated.

While not the finished article, we believe this concept strikes the best balance between safety and airspace access for AAM without adding to the workload of controllers or pilots. It also opens the door to airports becoming ‘vertiports,’ with eVTOLs operating seamlessly along existing traffic and offering a new source of income.

While not the finished article, we believe this concept strikes the best balance between safety and airspace access for AAM without adding to the workload of controllers or pilots.

Both these projects have moved us along our New Airspace Users roadmap and demonstrate the value and necessity of achieving airspace integration. With more to come this year and beyond, we are excited to be working with our partners to usher in this new generation of aviation.