Aug 22, 2019
Professor Fricke as correspondent at the National Aviation Conference 2019
Prof. Fricke spoke at the National Aviation Conference 2019 on the topics "New Mobility, Drone-Economy" and took part in the discussion with numerous high-ranking representatives of the industry:
Based on the current SESAR Drone Outlook, more than 7 million drones will have to be managed in European airspace by 2050. This poses a unique challenge to the worldwide air traffic and airspace management system (ATM/ATFCM) developed in the 1940s with its approx. 20,000 manned aircraft, which we in Germany must actively support at the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) within the framework of the implementing regulation for drone operations. In the EU, the future EU law on unmanned aerial vehicles was agreed in February this year ("Commission Implementing Regulation on rules and procedures for the operation of unmanned aircraft") in accordance with Art. 127 of the EASA Basic Regulation (VO 1139/2018). Now Germany has time for implementation by summer 2020, so it's high time. New business models of the drone economy for urban areas must be taken into account in order to hamper innovation as little as possible through new standards. This is particularly relevant in view of the outstanding commitment of German companies to the construction of drones and aircraft taxis. For manned aviation, every 100 kg of fuel saved counts: These have to be lifted in particular by optimised airspace structures, management and flight procedures.
We researchers have been offering various contributions to this for years, but a lot of time is lost in obtaining data for verification purposes of our models and algorithms in order to form the basis for industrial implementation. I am campaigning for a data pact between industry and research which, through policy, will guarantee the right framework conditions also with regard to the protection of the privacy of pilots, pilots and other actors. This would enable us to massively shorten innovation cycles. The data pact should also include the aircraft avatar, a digital copy of the real aircraft, which is the focus of industry in the field of aircraft maintenance, because the same de facto applies here. Let us exploit the opportunities offered by digitalisation for the much-needed research for tomorrow's mobility and for the benefit of our planet by minimising emissions and thus ultimately for the benefit of our society.