regulatory measures and innovative technology in the future of shared airspace. “With the adoption of measures like Remote ID and the FCC’s spectrum management initiative, along with the integration of advanced communications technology in UAVs, we can more effectively avoid frequency conflicts with other aircraft,” he said. “This not only increases safety but also paves the way for a future where manned and unmanned aircraft coexist harmoniously in the same airspace.”
What Needs to Change
The fact that UAV and eVTOL flights will have to conform to existing airspace regulations (including communication and coordination with air traffic control) does not mean that the current state of aerial communications will remain unchanged — because it won’t. In fact, the experts consulted for this story have plenty of changes in mind.
A case in point: Paragraph 151 of the FAA’s proposed “Spectrum Rules and Policies for the Operation of Unmanned Aircraft Systems” released on Feb. 7 for public comment says, “To further promote the safe integration of unmanned aircraft operations in controlled airspace and facilitate flight coordination, the NPRM (Notice of Proposed Rulemaking) proposes a process for UAS operators to obtain a VHF license to communicate with air traffic control and other aircraft.”
Such a move to improve communications between UAV pilots and manned aircraft makes sense to Burgess. “Since Part 107 confines UAVs to operate below 400 feet AGL, it would seem logical to have radio communications between an RPIC (remote pilot in command) and an airborne pilot,” he said.
Burgess’ recommendation is based on actual experience. “ERAU training students have flown UAVs at a private strip with owner permission,” he said. “Sometimes a manned airplane or helicopter will fly below 400 feet directly over this strip, and some have even attempted to land. This is why we broadcast on the local flight following frequency in the interest of flight safety — and we are Part 61 rated.
“Of course, ‘teaming’ (combining manned and unmanned aircraft together as a coordinated aerial unit) would encompass more communications capacity. This may need to be addressed as to discrete frequencies for ground-to-air communication between teaming members.”
Amol Parikh, vice president of marketing at Doodle Labs, a provider of high-bandwidth, multi-frequency mesh datalinks for extended-range UAV operations, emphasized the critical role of
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UMS Skeldar’s Hamers believes that ATC needs a significant overhaul not just to handle the influx of UAVs and eVTOLs into controlled airspace, but also to keep up with the increasing number of manned helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. “What is needed is digitalization of the airspace,” he said. “This means moving to digital broadband data and voice communications with all aircraft while gradually superseding VHF radio, which is a World War II-era technology that we still use and cling to. In today’s world, sticking with VHF starts to become ridiculous and not sustainable, especially if you add unmanned traffic to the mix.”
When it comes to decluttering aviation VHF frequencies, Burgess pointed to the military’s use of FM radios for short- range communications. (AM radio has the benefit of being able to travel beyond the horizon by bouncing radio waves off the ionosphere and back to the ground. FM does not.) After all, “Communications between air and ground have been utilized for decades in the military over FM frequencies with great success,” he noted.
Back to digitalization of the airspace. As air taxis catch on with the urban public and the number of these eVTOLs in service becomes significant, “aircraft automation and real-time data sharing between aircraft will likely play increasing roles in these corridors,” said the FAA spokesperson. “With an eye toward the greater automation we know must come, the FAA has been conducting demonstrations with NASA and industry stakeholders and others at test sites since 2019. The test results provide us with information to develop policies and standards to support routine operations. Among other things, we have tested increasingly large and complex operations and information exchange between airspace management service providers and between service providers and the FAA, including message security.”
The results of these tests have convinced the FAA that aerial communications need to evolve to incorporate large two-way data transfers. To address this drive for digitalization of the airspace, “We’ll develop open standards for commercial data exchange through the cloud,” he told Rotor Pro. “We’re making good, steady progress on interface standards. We understand what the companies’ objectives are and know what we need to do to meet their needs. It’s all going to be at scale. The questions are: At what level? When do they get to scale?”
It’s worth noting that the FAA claims it has proven it can move fast to automate a function, citing the Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability for drones as an example.
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