ICARUS project proposes an innovative solution to the challenge of the Common Altitude Reference inside VLL airspaces with the definition of a new U-space service and its validation in a real operational environment. In manned aviation, the methods of determining the altitude of an aircraft are based on pressure altitude difference measurements (e.g. QFE, QNH and FL) referred to a common datum. The UA flights superimpose a new challenge, since a small drone may take off and land almost from everywhere, hence reducing the original significance of QFE settings, introduced on behalf of manned pilots to display on the altimeter the 0-height at touchdown on the local runway. In fact, the possibility for n drones to take off at n different places would generate a series of n different QFE corresponding to different heights of ground pressures referred to the take-off “Home points”. Therefore for a large number drones, new methodologies and procedures shall be put in place. The ICARUS defines a new U-space U3 service tightly coupled with the interface of the existing U-space services (e.g. Tracking, and Flight Planning services). The users of ICARUS service shall be remote pilots competent to fly in BVLOS in the specific category of UAS operations and ultralight GA pilots potentially sharing the same VLL airspace. The ICARUS proposed approach foresees the realization of DTM service embedded in an Application Program Interface (API) that can be queried by UAS pilot/operator (or by drone itself) based on the actual positioning of the UA along its trajectory, computed by the (E)GNSS receiver. The output of the DTM service would provide information on distance from ground/obstacles in combination with the common altitude reference. Accuracy, continuity, integrity and availability requirements for GNSS-based altimetry together with accuracy and resolution requirements of the DTM to be provided by ICARUS service are key topics of the study.

The GOF2.0 Integrated Urban Airspace VLD (GOF2.0) very large demonstration project will safely, securely, and sustainably demonstrate operational validity of serving combined UAS, eVTOL and manned operations in a unified, dense urban airspace using current ATM and U-space services and systems. Both ATM and U-space communities depend extensively on the provision of timely, relevant, accurate and quality-assured digital information to collaborate and make informed decisions. The demonstrations focus on validation of the GOF 2.0 architecture for highly automated real-time separation assurance in dense air space including precision weather and telecom networks for air-ground communication and will significantly contribute to understanding how the safe integration of UAM and other commercial drone operations into ATM Airspace without degrading safety, security or disrupting current airspace operations can be implemented.

5G!Drones aim is to trial several UAV use-cases covering eMBB, URLLC, and mMTC 5G services, and to validate 5G KPIs for supporting such challenging use-cases. The project will drive the UAV verticals and 5G networks to a win-win position, on one hand by showing that 5G is able to guarantee UAV vertical KPIs, and on the other hand by demonstrating that 5G can support challenging use-cases that put pressure on network resources, such as low-latency and reliable communication, massive number of connections and high bandwidth requirements, simultaneously. 5G!Drones will build on top of the 5G facilities provided by the ICT-17 projects and a number of support sites, while identifying and developing the missing components to trial UAV use-cases. The project will feature Network Slicing as the key component to simultaneously run the three types of UAV services on the same 5G infrastructure (including the RAN, back/fronthaul, Core), demonstrating that each UAV application runs independently and does not affect the performance of other UAV applications, while covering different 5G services. While considering verticals will be the main users of 5G!Drones, the project will build a software layer to automate the run of trials that exposes a high level API to request the execution of a trial according to the scenario defined by the vertical, while enforcing the trial’s scenario using the API exposed by the 5G facility, as well as the 5G!Drones enablers API deployed at the facility. Thus, 5G!Drones will enable abstracting all the low-level details to run the trials for a vertical and aims at validating 5G KPIs to support several UAV use-cases via trials using a 5G shared infrastructure, showing that 5G supports the performance requirements of UAVs with several simultaneous UAV applications with different characteristics (eMBB, uRLLC and mMTC). Using the obtained results, 5G!Drones will allow the UAV association to make recommendations for further improvements on 5G.