Communication, Air Traffic, and the need for Uniform UAS Integration Systems

AUVSI was a sponsor and participant in the Air Traffic Control Association (ATCA) Global Conference and Exposition in Washington, D.C. where industry participants joined together with regulators and air traffic control representatives to discuss the latest trends and technology in air traffic control. Advanced Air Mobility (AAM), which includes Urban Air Mobility (UAM) and Regional Air Mobility (RAM), was a central theme and featured in numerous discussions and presentations. AUVSI was featured in two sessions, the “Executive Update on Today’s New Entrant Operations in the NAS” which featured President & CEO, Brian Wynne, and “Government Connectedness: Collaboration and coordination among Federal-State-Local Governments: developing a playbook to Conquering Implementation Challenges,” moderated by Executive Vice President of Government & Public Affairs, Michael Robbins.?

The size of the commercial U.S. drone fleet is 1.6x the size of the U.S. fleet of registered crewed aircraft and growing?

The UAS and AAM industries are technological innovation and the FAA is working on the integration of UAS, AAM, and other advanced aviation applications into the National Airspace System (NAS). There are currently 890,000 drone registrations in the U.S. and the industry has been growing at a 16% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) over the past five years. As UAS continue to integrate into the NAS and international airspaces, it is becoming increasingly important for traditional crewed and uncrewed aircraft to be aware of each other and able to interact with each other. There were 204,000, a figure forecasted to increase modestly by roughly 5,000 registered aircraft over the next 20 years. The size of the U.S. drone market dwarfs this in sheer unit volume and capacity for flight interactions, though the use of the airspace is very different with the overwhelming majority of drone operations taking place at low altitudes — most below 400 feet. As of the end of 2021, the FAA recorded 622,000 and that figure is expected to increase to 858,000 by 2026. At present, the estimated active U.S. commercial drone fleet is approximately 328,000 drones.??

The number of potential interaction points for crewed and uncrewed aircraft is also growing?

The size of the U.S. commercial drone fleet relative to conventional aircraft — combined with a higher growth rate, greater operational flexibility, and rapid technological advances — makes this a market with a high probability of interaction between traditional aircraft and uncrewed systems and between uncrewed systems and each other. The volume of vehicles relative to the conventional fleet and the high corresponding number of likely interactions results in a high-capacity requirement for any integration effort into the NAS. This capacity requirement expands beyond the FAA’s current capabilities. Tim Arel, Chief Operating Officer for the FAA Air Traffic Organization, noted there is a growing need for systems integration. The FAA does not, however, expect to manage UAS air traffic management (often referred to as UTM) in the same way it manages conventional aircraft and the plan for AAM traffic management is not yet clear. Due to capacity constraints of existing air traffic control capabilities, they expect industry is likely to play a major role in future integration.??

Currently, interaction only occurs when UAS violate restricted airspace, but this is set to change?

To increase the level of integration, more advanced detection and communications are needed. As Captain Pedro Romano (U.S. Air Force) noted, with current systems, air traffic controllers have some limited UAS detection capabilities. Certain small UAS can be located via existing sensors. However, there is a lack of interaction unless the UAS violates restricted airspace. There is a need to develop more advanced systems for detection, in addition to the establishment of and clarity on rules and policies around deployment, staffing, maintenance, and procedures for when drone incursions occur. Currently there is not a uniformly established operating model that relevant parties have agreed on. Systems and parties act independently of each other. As Arel noted, there is a need for rules and communication uniformity to help create parity for the differing aircraft rule sets. For rules and systems to work, vehicles must be aware of each other, understand each other, and understand each other’s capabilities and actions.??

See-and-avoid is an insufficient safety mechanism for drone interactions, creating a need for advanced detection, sensory equipment, and communication?

As uncrewed aircraft continue to be integrated into the NAS and operations beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) occur more regularly, there is a need for technology solutions to ensure crewed and uncrewed aircraft can be actively deconflicted, not just strategically separated. Outside of defined take-off and landing patterns, it is unusual for crewed aircraft to operate under 500 feet or within 100 feet of a structure. When operating at low altitudes, pilots’ ability to see and avoid aerial obstacles may also be restricted by the need to navigate ground terrain, further increasing the need for sensory equipment in these scenarios4. In 2019, Embry Riddle University conducted a low-altitude detection test using line of sight detection of small UAS by low-flying pilots. UAS were detected visually in 30% of instances at distances of 200-2,300 meters and in only 15% of instances while static.? AUVSI is asking Congress and the FAA to encourage and incentivize crewed aircraft in this low altitude airspace to equip with FAA approved safety technology to have the right of way over uncrewed aircraft operating in the same airspace.?

Technologies such as ADS-B, which are already available and being implemented, offer significant opportunities to improve safety at potential interaction points???

Technologies such as ADS-B, FIS-B and TIS-B, which have been available in the U.S. since 2013, offer a significant statistical advantage for equipped aircraft in airspace safety. In 2019, the Regulus Group published a study analyzing utilization and impact. Between 2013 and 2017, there were 1,359 accidents involving aircraft, of which only 34 involved ADS-B equipped aircraft. Of these, 33 were weather-related. There were no mid-air collisions nor non-weather-related ground impacts, and only a single weather-related ground impact for ADS-B equipped aircraft. Of the 1,325 accidents where ADS-B was not equipped, 3.7% were mid-air collisions, 82.2% were weather related, 6.9% were ground impact, and 7.2% were a combination of ground impact and weather. Adjusting for the number of operations, ADS-B equipped aircraft were involved in 53% fewer incidents (3.8 accidents per million operations vs. 8.08 per million for un-equipped aircraft) than un-equipped aircraft. Integrating safety systems to improve sensory detection and communication will?play a critical role in strengthening the safety of the National Air Space and de-confliction of UAS operations as integration enters more advanced stages.?

Public to private cooperation is critical and industry is in a key position to advance technologies that alleviate the burden on air traffic control to provide communication in the national airspace?

Ultimately, information sharing will be key to integration. New systems must be built to integrate with existing systems and adapted as we go, and the FAA’s willingness to work with industry to test and deploy advanced technologies to keep the U.S. at the forefront of aviation safety leadership will further support integration success. When looking at the integration of AAM as an example, there are procedures in place for vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) crewed systems that can be used and built upon. As Brian Wynne pointed out, we cannot burden air traffic control with every flight. They do not have capacity. We can, however, leverage the speed of industry to develop solutions that work within the existing regulatory framework.?

Aaron Bull is Senior Economic Research Analyst?at AUVSI.