Paris, France, 23 September 2022 – M3 Techniques, air visitors administration (ATM) and unmanned aerial programs (UAS) operator, gentle and electrical plane producer, Pipistrel, and Volocopter, the pioneer of city air mobility (UAM), have accomplished their first joint flight take a look at marketing campaign in France at Pontoise airfield. The week-long flight assessments simulated three totally different avoidance manoeuvres in real-world conditions the place unexpected circumstances happen, corresponding to an entire airport or vertiport closure, an unavailable remaining method and takeoff (FATO) space, and visitors deconfliction. This joint marketing campaign between the three firms and the French companions, Groupe ADP and its wholly-owned subsidiary Hologarde, aimed to attain clean interplay inside and between the brand new decrease airspace’s unmanned visitors administration (UTM) and commonplace civil aviation ATM programs.
The aviation {industry} is experiencing an innovation upsurge pushed by expertise and societal stress for brand new types of aviation targeted on sustainable, digital, and autonomous air mobility. The ensuing options that cater to this {industry} shift will generate a major enhance in visitors density within the aforementioned decrease airspace. Since present ATM programs should not designed to deal with such volumes or digitalization, harmonizing present and new visitors administration programs for brand-new plane integration will guarantee environment friendly large-scale operations. This contains industrial, basic, and drone plane for cargo and passenger flights, each crewed and uncrewed.
The CORUS-XUAM challenge, funded by the European Union’s initiative Single European Sky ATM Analysis (SESAR) Joint Endeavor, focuses on fixing the problem of typical and new visitors administration system integration and consists of 19 companions and 11 associated third events. M3 Techniques, Pipistrel, and Volocopter all accomplished particular person flight take a look at campaigns previous to this occasion as a way to convey their plane according to the U-space companies. The CORUS-XUAM flight take a look at carried out at Pontoise airfield close to Paris is the third of a number of flight assessments to simulate quite a lot of real-world eventualities that exhibit how UTM and ATM intersect with a number of plane varieties. Furthermore, the CORUS-XUAM challenge will proceed to proactively take a look at and create a secure and managed decrease airspace below the European Union’s formidable Single European Sky (SES) initiative all through 2022.
The profitable flight assessments at Pontoise airfield had been carried out with M3 System’s BOREAL remotely piloted plane system, Pipistrel’s crewed Velis Electro, the one type-certified electrical plane in industrial service on the planet, and Volocopter’s full-scale, remotely piloted 2X prototype. Pipistrel makes use of the standard ATM tower and system whereas Volocopter and M3 Techniques use the UTM system. The next three flight eventualities had been examined:
- The surprising occupancy of a FATO and plane diversion as a result of precedence touchdown of one other plane – Pipistrel and Volocopter plane.
- The diversion of a flight path because of the closure of an airport or vertiport – M3 Techniques.
- The diversion of a flight path with two plane flying the identical path – M3 Techniques and Volocopter plane.
“M3 Techniques is blissful to be a part of this large-scale European challenge,” says Marc Pollina, M3 Techniques CEO. “These profitable assessments affirm that our BOREAL UAS will probably be an enabler for future XUAM operations in conditions the place plane want to soundly divert paths to a different vertiport as a result of an unexpected closure or one other plane within the air. By offering re-routing demonstrations and tactical communications with U-House service suppliers, M3 Techniques can assist future coordination between AAM and airport operators.”
“Because the producer of the one type-certified electrical plane in industrial service on the planet, Pipistrel is proud to participate in technical initiatives that form the imaginative and prescient of air mobility and make progress in a significant means,” mentioned Gabriel Massey, Pipistrel’s President and Managing Director. “The CORUS challenge and Paris demonstrations clearly present how UAM automobiles will be capable to fly safely in common airspace post-2030 and can assist to unlock new lower-noise and lower-emission air passenger and air cargo companies.”
“Volocopter is happy to have accomplished one other profitable flight take a look at throughout the SESAR CORUS-XUAM challenge. Again in 2019, once we first examined the 2X ATM integration at Helsinki airport, we had been actively concerned within the growth of the European U-House Idea of Operations,” mentioned Oliver Reinhardt, Volocopter’s Chief Danger and Certification Officer (CRCO). “Constructing an environment friendly ecosystem round UAM is Volocopter’s mission, and connecting ATM/UTM integration with our digital platform, VoloIQ, is poised to be an integral a part of bringing UAM to megacities worldwide. I’m trying ahead to the following CORUS-XUAM take a look at flights later this yr in Germany and what we will obtain there.”
This challenge has acquired funding from the SESAR Joint Endeavor below the European Union’s Horizon 2020 analysis and innovation program below grant settlement No. 101017682.
About M3 Techniques
M3 Techniques has been created from engineering actions within the Satellite tv for pc Radio Navigation (GNSS – World Navigation Satellite tv for pc Techniques) discipline and from consulting actions in ATM (Air Site visitors Administration) and Unmanned Plane System Site visitors Administration (UTM) sector. Acknowledged at European stage due to robust involvement within the Galileo sign definition by examine contracts R&D assist actions of the French area Company (CNES) and lots of implications in European Fee, European House Company (ESA) and European Union Company for the House Programme (EUSPA), goal domains of the group are mobility, positioning, knowledge assortment and processing, and surveying, masking the aerial, terrestrial and maritime sectors. The corporate has structured its supply in 4 segments: – Consulting and Software – Radio Navigation Engineering and Sign Processing – Testing & Measurement – Drones and embedded computer systems.
The corporate provides (through its sister firm BOREAL) the BOREAL Remotely Piloted Plane System for various civilian purposes. Its modularity, compact dimension, 8-hour autonomy and nice vary, make it an excellent drone for extremely demanding missions, corresponding to reconnaissance, surveillance, and knowledge assortment. www.boreal-uas.com, www.m3systems.eu.
About Pipistrel
Based in 1989, Pipistrel is an award-winning gentle plane producer and chief in analysis and growth of electrical propulsion. Pipistrel produces electrical and combustion fashions for the final aviation, protection and superior air mobility sectors. Pipistrel’s Velis Electro grew to become the world’s first, and at the moment solely, electrical plane to obtain full type-certification from the European Union Aviation Security Company (EASA) in 2020 and earned UK CAA kind certification in 2022.
Pipistrel’s pioneering work has been acknowledged by awards from NASA, IDC, and different organizations. The corporate, which provides a household of gliders and lightweight plane with each electrical and combustion engines, has delivered greater than 2,500 gentle plane worldwide since its founding and moreover has each hybrid and electrical propulsion fashions below growth. Pipistrel contains the next firms: PIPISTREL d.o.o., PIPISTREL VERTICAL SOLUTIONS d.o.o and PIPISTREL ITALIA SRL. For extra info, go to: www.pipistrel-aircraft.com.
About Textron Inc.
Pipistrel’s father or mother firm, Textron Inc., is a multi-industry firm that leverages its world community of plane, protection, industrial and finance companies to offer clients with revolutionary options and companies. Textron is understood world wide for its highly effective manufacturers corresponding to Bell, Cessna, Beechcraft, Pipistrel, Jacobsen, Kautex, Lycoming, E-Z-GO, Arctic Cat, and Textron Techniques. For extra info, go to: www.textron.com.
About Volocopter
Volocopter brings city air mobility (UAM) to megacities worldwide. We intention to enhance the standard of life for folks in cities by providing a incredible new mode of transportation. For that, we create sustainable and scalable UAM ecosystems with companions in infrastructure and operations.
Volocopter’s household of eVTOL plane will supply passengers (VoloCity and VoloConnect) and items (VoloDrone) swift, safe, and emission-free connections to their locations, supported by VoloIQ, the UAM ecosystem’s software program platform that serves as its digital spine for secure and environment friendly operations.
As a pioneer within the UAM {industry}, Volocopter will launch industrial companies throughout the subsequent few years. Based in 2011, the corporate employs greater than 500 folks in Germany and Singapore, has accomplished over 1,000 profitable private and non-private take a look at flights, and raised $579 million in fairness from traders, together with Geely, WP Funding, Mercedes-Benz Group, Intel Capital, and BlackRock. www.volocopter.com
