The Republic of Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) has successfully verified the integrated operational capabilities of a private consortium through the K-UAM demonstration project, which began in October on the Ara Waterway and the Cheongna-Gyeyang section.
The demonstration flights focused on key elements such as operation, traffic management and vertiport operation in a real-world operating environment.
The private consortium, consisting of the K-UAM One Team (KT, Korean Air, Incheon International Airport Corporation, Hyundai Motor Company and Hyundai Engineering & Construction) and the Dream Team (Korea Airports Corporation and Hanwha Systems), tested various operational scenarios using urban air mobility (UAM) standalone aircraft with the cooperation of the Air Force.
MOLIT said on December 14 that both consortia successfully performed key functions, including operation procedures, traffic management systems, vertiport operation systems and abnormal situation response procedures. Inter-agency information sharing and system connectivity were also confirmed to function effectively.
KT, a member of the K-UAM One Team that participated in the demonstration, successfully tested the stability of the UAM traffic management system and 5G aviation network under the challenging conditions of a real-world urban environment.
Meanwhile, Korea Airports Corporation, a member of the K-UAM Dream Team, explained that its self-developed UAM traffic management system was linked with Boeing’s AI-based aviation information system to share flight information in real time.
The verification evaluation team, comprised of professors and technical committee members from Far East University, Hanseo University and Kyungwoon University, announced that “the planned technical objectives for integrated operability were met.”
Meanwhile, an urban demonstration flight using an Optionally Piloted Personal Air Vehicle (OPPAV) was also conducted. This flight, which was held alongside a flight demonstration event for interested parties on November 24, confirmed the reliability of multi-satellite, multi-frequency anti-jamming technology even in urban radio environments.
The OPPAV’s positional accuracy remained within the normal range throughout the flight, and ground communication quality was stable. Furthermore, satellite navigation correction signals were continuously received, ensuring the reliability necessary for autonomous navigation.
Radio interference, which is highly prevalent in urban areas, is among the five major safety issues for UAM identified by MOLIT. The remaining four are building-induced winds, bird strikes, separation from aircraft and drones, and battery fires.
“Through this urban demonstration, we were able to verify how the UAM operation system and core technologies operate in a real-world environment,” Kim Hong-mok, Director of the Mobility and Automobile Bureau at MOLIT said. “We will continue to pursue a verification method that minimises risks while simultaneously examining realistic operating environments, in line with the aircraft development phase. We will thoroughly strengthen policy preparations to ensure the safe establishment of UAM and achieve the national goal of ‘realising future mobility’ without a hitch.”
For more information
Image: MOLIT