GUTMA has been at the forefront of developing digital information exchange between airspace users. The key lessons learned from this work can be categorised into three areas: governance, business and market development, and collaboration between authorities and industry in building the drone ecosystem.
Governance: effective governance is essential for the success of digital aviation. GUTMA has supported the development of a multi-layered governance framework: rules, standards and an administrative implementation layer. Starting with regulation, the EU has taken the lead in this area with the adoption of comprehensive rules under regulations 947/2020, 945/2020, and 664/2021. GUTMA has always been a strong backer of the development of the associated AMC/GM.
The second layer of governance involves the development of standards that translate regulatory requirements into practical tasks for operators. GUTMA has been instrumental in supporting standard development organisations and has conducted a systematic mapping exercise to compare how different standards implement and demonstrate compliance with regulatory requirements. For example, compliance with strategic deconfliction and identification requirements can be demonstrated through the application of ASTM 3548 and 3411 standards, along with ED269, ED270 and ED318 for geofencing purposes.
The third layer of governance is the establishment of a multilateral agreement between market actors. This agreement ensures that all parties agree on the quality and timing of data exchange necessary to maintain safe operations. GUTMA's governance and data exchange agreement, implemented in the North Texas UTM Key Site Evaluation, is a critical foundation for delivering U-space services. This agreement includes the establishment of operational and standards committees where market actors can finalise the details needed to make the ecosystem work effectively.
Business and market development: the digital aviation ecosystem presents opportunities and challenges for companies far beyond traditional aviation stakeholders – the "democratisation" of access to airspace. Digitalisation, including open source developments, drives the "democratisation" of services that are indispensable to access airspace, yet at the same time making them also more challenging to monetise as a self-standing business. Services that are currently provided by a limited number of specialised aviation companies are becoming more like commodities that can be produced by a far larger number of companies. Companies must carefully assess the emerging market with its particular opportunities and competitive pressures, exploring ways to horizontally or vertically integrate to find sustainable market niches.
Big tech companies like Wing and Amazon are already exploring this integrated business model, leveraging their scale to cross-subsidise services and gather valuable customer data. Establishing a network for medical supplies, for example, might be more viable when integrated into a broader market. The lesson here is that digital services require scale, and early market developments may provide valuable insights into the future direction of the industry.
Collaboration between authorities and industry: strong cooperation between authorities and industry is essential for framing the market and ensuring that all stakeholders are aligned. Digitalisation impacts both industry and regulators, necessitating automation of supervisory functions. Traditional methods, relying on manually reviewing of Excel spreadsheets or databases, will no longer suffice in the world of big data.
GUTMA has worked closely with its members, including authorities like the Swiss Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), to support implementation. The FAA has contributed to the multilateral governance and data exchange agreement and actively supports this GUTMA deliverable in the North Texas UTM Key Site Evaluation. GUTMA has also developed a U-space service provider (USSP) certification support framework to assist with the certification processes in various Member States.