"Safe integration of mixed operations, with manned and unmanned aircraft in urban environments"
The UMILES Next air taxi, Concept Integrity, equipped with FlyFree technology developed by TECNALIA, successfully took to the skies of Jaen at the end of October
This was the first free flight of this type of aircraft in Spain and was undertaken as part of the final demonstrations of the USPACE4UAMproject, the European consortium for the safe integration of mixed operations with manned and unmanned aircraft in urban environments.
During this demonstration, UMILES Next and TECNALIA have been able to test automatic flight control and autonomous take-off and landing of its eVTOL (electric and vertical take-off and landing) aircraft, which have enabled the air taxi to be integrated into the the European urban airspace.
Integration of these aircraft into air space
This is a major step towards the integration of this type of aircraft into the airspace, as intended by the European USPACE4UAM project, which seeks to validate future urban air traffic management with unmanned aircraft.
The mobility of the future aims to be increasingly smart and sustainable. New systems and developments will mean that alternative transport solutions will be available in increasingly crowded cities. UMILES Next and TECNALIA have their sights set on their air and ground-based urban mobility solutions,which are expected to become a real alternative by around 2028.
The Concept Integrity prototype is the evolution of the first version presented in 2019, which has been further developed and dimensioned, is capable of moving autonomously in cities, designed to transport one person and cover urban distances of 15 km in 15 minutes.
