Developing a roadmap for UAVs
Saab is part of the Air4All consortium in Europe. Recently, the consortium received an order for a detailed action plan for how Unmanned Vehicles (UAVs) are to be able to fly in civil airspace at the latest 2015.
Image: The image shows how unmanned vehicles, UAVs, can communicate with other aircraft and aircraft controllers on the ground.
2/19/2008 | The project “UAV Insertion into General Air Traffic” is strategically important in the European collaboration within aviation. The Air4All consortium largely contains all major aviation companies in Europe and made a joint response to the request for quote from European Defence Agency, EDA. The consortium won the order and the contract with EDA was signed at the beginning of January.
Political support
This is the first time that politicians have given clear support to a common European initiative to develop an action plan and regulations for UAV in civil airspace.
“The project runs for six months and in that time we will hold three workshops with the main players within the UAV area in Europe, for example military authorities and civil aviation authorities,” says Ragnar Rosengren who is leading the project at Saab Aerosystems.
Results around mid-year
The project consists of nine work packages in total; Saab is participating in five and is responsible for the work package that covers the analysis of the present situation to develop a common European regulation for UAVs in civil airspace.
“We are working with the work packages that are strategically important to us and we are investing as much ourselves as EDA is contributing”, explains Ragnar Rosengren.
Latest 2015
The Air4All consortium is continuing to work with the planning that Aerospace & Defence Industries Association of Europe (ASD) has developed as a basis for UAV work.
When the project is completed, mid way through the year, the consortium will present a detailed plan containing the implementation plan and cost estimate for reaching the objective of UAVs being able to fly in civil airspace by 2015 at the latest.
“It covers a number of things, including the development and verification of new technology, but also new common European regulations. It is very positive that the politicians want us to solve this within Europe, together”, says Ragnar Rosengren.
A consortium of defence and aerospace companies
The Air4All consortium comprises Alenia Aeronautica, BAE Systems with BAE Systems Operations Platform Solutions, Dassault Aviation, Diehl BGT Defence, EADS CASA, EADS Defence & Security Germany, Galileo Avionica, QinetiQ, Rheinmetall Defence Electronics, Saab, Sagem Defence Systems and Thales Aerospace as Co-contractors.