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Airservices Australia Begins Building Australia's Advanced Drone Traffic Management System

 

 

Airservices Australia is gearing up for a surge in drone activity over the next two decades by partnering with Frequentis Australasia to create a state-of-the-art digital air traffic management system. This system will safely integrate millions of uncrewed aircraft flights into Australia's increasingly busy airspace.

 

A recent analysis commissioned by Airservices forecasts that drone flights in Australia will escalate from around 1.5 million today to over 60 million by 2043. This significant growth necessitates advanced technology to manage the increasing air traffic effectively.

 

Frequentis has been chosen to develop a Flight Information Management System (FIMS), which will allow Airservices to seamlessly incorporate drones, air taxis, and other uncrewed aircraft into Australian airspace. The FIMS will be a central component of Australia's Uncrewed Aircraft Systems Traffic Management (UTM) ecosystem, facilitating the exchange of flight information between air traffic control, traditional aircraft, and uncrewed airspace users.

 

Frequentis was selected through a rigorous process, including prototype development and in-field trials, demonstrating their expertise in delivering operational UTM systems globally.

 

Jason Harfield, CEO of Airservices Australia, emphasized the importance of this new system in accommodating the rapid growth of uncrewed aircraft. “Drones are the biggest growth area in aviation, and our partnership with Frequentis to develop a FIMS will enable us to integrate traditional and new airspace users into increasingly busy airspace,” Mr. Harfield said. “With Frequentis, we will develop a FIMS that meets the needs of Australian airspace users and ensures we can safely integrate millions of drone flights with other users. I’m confident the new FIMS will encourage the growing drone market to reach its full potential in Australia.”

 

Frequentis Australia’s Managing Director, Martin Rampl, expressed excitement about the partnership. “Frequentis is the only company worldwide to have successfully delivered UTM solutions to multiple Air Navigation Service Providers. This strategic partnership with Airservices Australia represents another important milestone in our mission to support the Australian airspace ecosystem with safe, efficient, and compliant integration of drones while fostering innovation and economic growth,” Mr. Rampl said. “We are looking forward to working with Airservices to jointly develop the system, pushing technological innovation in the uncrewed aviation domain, including the ability to integrate new services in the future.”

 

Source: Airservices Australia