Skyroads AG began equipping its automated flight test site at the Augsburg Airport. This Munich-based company has taken on the crucial task of facilitating the aviation of tomorrow: full traffic automation by Skyroads will make tomorrow’s AAM (Advanced Air Mobility) safe and economically feasible (Skyroads). Following successful suitability testing, the test site will provide Skyroads and other project partners with a large-scale real-life laboratory for industrial and academic research around AAM and associated infrastructure. The project is co-funded by the Free State of Bavaria and sets a positive course for the future operation of aircraft.
Test Site Provides Opportunities to Advance AAM Concepts
The test field aims to improve common data communication technologies in aviation so the open, automated, and interoperable Skyroads flight control system can safely operate in metropolitan regions. Skyroads is now laying the foundation for profitable long-term operations in the AAM industry.
Skyroads allows operators of fleets, ground infrastructure, and vertiports (take-off and landing areas for AAM aircraft), along with aircraft manufacturers, to test vehicles and infrastructure at an early development stage. Along with providing safe test flights, Skyroads provides support with test flight application procedures, facilitating the respective approval by authorities. Partners include Supernal as the AAM division of the Korean Hyundai Group Flix, the Technische Universität München with several chairs, Hybrid-Airplane Technologies, FlyNow Aviation, Horyzn, Blueflite, Amazilia Aerospace, and Manta Aircraft from Italy.
“The new test field is a milestone not only for us but for the entire field of Advanced Air Mobility. We will only see drones for transporting passengers and cargo in densely populated urban areas if we create open, automated and interoperable flight management systems for them. That’s what Augsburg is all about,” Corvin Huber, CEO of Skyroads, comments.
“The establishment of Skyroads at the aviation location Augsburg [sic] marks the beginning of a new chapter of future mobility in aviation. The Augsburg Airport site offers ideal conditions for implementing such a flight test centre as a real laboratory. We warmly welcome our latest innovation partner, Skyroads, at their new home base,” says Maximilian Hartwig, Managing Director of Augsburger Flughafen GmbH.
Skyroads Joins Other Industry Partners
Skyroads is validating and verifying its system architecture and service approach at Augsburg Airport. The Munich-based start-up is simultaneously creating a safety report and is supporting the development of future certification processes through collecting and evaluating operational experience. The Technical University of Munich is looking into the effects of innovative air traffic on the environment, especially regarding visibility and noise. The ultimate goal is to provide local authorities with a simulation tool that can be used to predict the impact of future air traffic to allow for support-informed decision-making.
“Augsburg is a historically established aerospace city. Companies and institutes such as MT Aerospace, Rocket Factory, Premium AEROTEC, supplier companies and the German Aerospace Center DLR are shaping this area today. When it comes to future forms of mobility, including urban air mobility, there is also a lot happening in Augsburg. I am therefore delighted that, in addition to a development company for air taxis, Skyroads has also now settled at Augsburg Airport. In addition to the framework conditions for a full scale laboratory, the company has excellent opportunities here for finding skilled talent and therefore can grow. This is achieved by an aerospace friendly environment, including universities, colleges, the excellent accessibility and the pleasant work-life balance that the Augsburg region can offer, with culture, sports and leisure activities in the countryside while still maintaining a metropolitan flair,” Dr. Wolfgang Hübschle, head of the economics division of the City of Augsburg, comments.
The next steps for Skyroads and Augsburg Airport are to design and establish an operating agreement to regulate the operation of test and demonstration flights without disrupting conventional air traffic and areas surrounding the airport.
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