Article

Digitalisation of aviation: insights for experts

Koen De Vos

What will digitalisation mean for the European aviation industry? Koen De Vos, Secretary-General of the Global UTM Association (GUTMA) explores some of the potential technical, operational and institutional consequences of ATM’s digital evolution.

The rapid digitalisation of our economies has made its way into aviation and air traffic management (ATM). EUROCONTROL, as a key player in this sector, is poised to be at the forefront of this transformation. With roles as an air navigation service provider (ANSP), Network Manager (NM), route charge collector, and a co-founder of the SESAR Joint Undertaking (SESAR JU), EUROCONTROL’s involvement in this digital evolution is multifaceted and crucial.

The future of aviation is difficult to predict with absolute certainty, especially in the face of fast-paced technological advances. However, analysing trends allows us to make informed predictions. Historically, digital technologies in aviation have primarily served to enhance human performance. For instance, air traffic controllers now use sophisticated tools to detect potential conflicts earlier than ever before, and flow management has become more finely tuned thanks to digital advancements.

But we are approaching a paradigm shift. The current model, which is human-centric, focusing on communication between pilots and controllers to ensure safety and efficiency, must soon evolve into a system-centric model. In this future, technology and automated systems would take over most routine tasks, with humans shifting into supervisory roles, stepping in to take over in unusual situations. This shift represents a fundamental rethinking of how aviation operates.

Digital technologies have already automated many of the basic functions of a pilot. Modern aircraft can in effect fly autonomously using a combination of onboard sensors, global navigation satellite systems (GNSS), sophisticated software algorithms and advanced communication systems. In current operations, automation has taken over 70% to 90% of pilot tasks, including flight control, navigation, engine and system management, and communication. The airline pilot today spends a lot of time supervising an aircraft that flies itself, often flying more economically than any human can manage.

"The current model, which is human-centric, focusing on communication between pilots and controllers to ensure safety and efficiency, must soon evolve into a system-centric model."

This is the latest stage in a trend of increasing automation that has already automated the functions of the communication operator, the navigator, the flight engineer and the third pilot. Yes, flight decks in the thirties had a six-to-seven-person crew. Today the two pilots are there to take care of exceptional cases. But as automation continues, the cost of carrying two people on board “just in case” will be harder to justify. The need for the pilot will not disappear but as that need becomes less frequent, remote piloting will become common. All commercial aviation will tend towards being carried out by uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs), or drones.

One of the most significant examples of the trend to UAV is Wisk’s fully autonomous, electric air taxi. Outwardly it is similar to the products of European companies Lilium or Volocopter. However, Wisk has taken the decision in principle to directly leap to autonomy, bypassing the phase of initial piloting. This brave decision signals even more a future where pilotless aircraft will become the norm. These technologies will not just be limited to small drones; they are expected to scale up to larger aircraft and more complex operations.

In air traffic control, a similar evolution is underway. Automation has already made strides in flight planning, airspace management, traffic monitoring and conflict resolution. However, the provision of separation remains largely human-centric. The challenges currently plaguing the ATM system, such as limited capacity and scalability, indicate that relying solely on human controllers may no longer be viable.

U-space is a step towards a more automated and scalable air traffic control system. U-space aims to provide air traffic services more efficiently and safely by leveraging the immense computational power of modern systems to deconflict air traffic strategically, before operations begin. This capability is essential as the number of drone operations continues to grow exponentially. Estimates suggest that by 2035, there could be more drone operations over a single major city in one hour than there are crewed flights across all of Europe in a day.

The transition from current levels of automation – level 1 (assisted operation) and level 2 (task reduction) – to more advanced levels – level 3 (supervised automation) and level 4 (management by exception) – is already underway. This transition will likely necessitate a complete rethinking of aviation as we know it. Drones might fly everywhere, including indoors or close to people. Drone services go beyond transport of goods and people and will gather information that businesses can use in their daily activities. Airports will include people’s lawns or driveways. Many companies will be able to operate drones and master U-space technologies to access the airspace. In all, many companies will become active in the new aviation ecosystem, democratising access to airspace. Welcome to Aviation 2.0.

Opportunities for current stakeholders and new entrants

The digitalisation of aviation presents significant opportunities for traditional stakeholders and new entrants. Early adopters of digital business models are likely to become the standard-bearers for the future of aviation. Traditional aviation actors should embrace these opportunities, find their niche within the digital ecosystem and explore how they can contribute to and benefit from the evolution of the industry.

Drones offer unparalleled flexibility compared to crewed aircraft. They can perform complex manoeuvres, such as zigzagging or hovering, and operate in environments that were previously inaccessible, from low-altitude flights near infrastructure to high-altitude operations near the Kármán Line. This versatility opens new possibilities for businesses and industries.

Remote piloting of aircraft offers operational benefits.

The constraint that the crew need to get to or be in the aircraft often limits operating hours of airframes and requires routing that “returns to home” in working hours. Remote aircrew can go home at night, no matter where the aircraft is.

Digital aviation democratises access to airspace. No longer will it be the exclusive domain of large airlines or traditional aviation companies. With the right software, any company can run drone operations and participate in the new digital ecosystem. This shift is analogous to the transformation of the elevator industry, where automation replaced manual operators, making high-rise buildings more accessible and efficient.

In this digital world, the focus will shift from transportation to digital service provision. Companies will use drones supported by U-space services to offer a wide range of services. This transition mirrors the disruption seen in the taxi industry, where companies like Uber and Lyft revolutionised the market by leveraging digital platforms. In aviation, we might see an important shift in value creation by the drone ecosystem in the guise of data it can provide to improve business efficiency.

The establishment of an open and fair drone ecosystem is essential to ensure that all companies have equal access to this new economy. This is crucial for maintaining the competitiveness of the European Union's economy. The integration of drones into daily business operations will create new value streams and drive economic growth.

GUTMA’s role and key lessons learned

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.

Migration of U-space concepts to ATM

The number of flights will increase as UAV operations grow exponentially. The current obvious differences between a small UAV, an electrically powered air taxi and conventional aircraft will blur as remote piloting becomes common and new business needs to explore other configurations of size and weight. The current segregation of U-space and ATM will become increasingly hard to justify as the flights controlled by each look more alike.

As the aviation industry continues to evolve, the principles and technologies developed under the U-space and UTM frameworks are increasingly relevant to traditional air traffic management (ATM) systems. The ongoing digitalisation of air traffic control, driven by automation and data-driven decision-making, offers a glimpse into the future of ATM – one that is more integrated, decentralised and capable of handling the complex demands of both crewed and uncrewed aviation.

The application of computing power and use of big data in a digital aviation framework would be a seismic shift for traditional aviation, especially if airlines can in-source access to airspace capabilities and become their own U-space provider. All aviation players will be impacted, including EUROCONTROL.

How could the basic functions of EUROCONTROL evolve in a digital system?

To what extent would we still need capacity balancing and central flow management as we currently know the Network Management activities, when the system can in real-time crunch the data to strategically deconflict operations in advance? To what extent would we still need the MUAC air traffic control when airlines can in-source ATC? Do we still need the CRCO (Central Route Charges Office), as airlines know the cost of U-space services and will directly include them in the airline ticket? To what extent would we still need the specific ATM research in the SESAR Joint Undertaking, as the underlying digital technologies become less and less aviation specific, and the case becomes stronger to focus on developing applications for valuable drone services?

One of the key lessons from real-world implementations like the North Texas UTM Key Site Evaluation, is the importance of collaboration between various stakeholders, including regulators, service providers, and industry participants. This collaboration is critical to ensure that the migration of U-space concepts into ATM is smooth and that the benefits of digitalisation are fully realised.

We know that U-space will eventually extend to the current commercial air traffic airspace and will lead to a more efficient, scalable and safe airspace. The speed of this shift towards digital aviation depends on both the policymakers and industry. The correct implementation of the U-space regulation is a first test. The certification processes in various Member States should produce a critical number of U-space providers that will operate in a competitive SESIII. U-space is the first audacious step in the digital aviation paradigm.

Let’s move... carefully but swiftly.

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