WASHINGTON, DC, November 3, 2021 – The Urban Air Mobility Division of Hyundai Motor Group (the Group) announced today the expansion of its Airspace Management Consortium with the introduction of Skyroads (formerly D3 Technologies), Altitude Angel and OneSky to the industry working group. The Group launched the Consortium in June to serve as a resource for the advanced air mobility (AAM) industry and policymakers in the United States and internationally as they begin to shape common operating and design standards that support industry development.
Hyundai Motor Group convenes the Consortium quarterly to facilitate sharing of key learnings and best practices. The new members plan to contribute strategic insight on the Group’s concept of operations (ConOps) for AAM airspace management and ground mobility integration. Looking ahead, the Group will work with Consortium members to simulate the operation of UAS Traffic Management (UTM) and AAM network and ultimately flight test the Group’s ConOps.
“AAM will operate at the intersection of today’s busiest and most complex transportation routes, particularly in the skies,” said Pamela Cohn, global chief operating officer and U.S. general manager, Urban Air Mobility Division of Hyundai Motor Group. “Expanding digital infrastructure to accommodate new modes of aerial mobility is a challenge given all of the disparate airspace operating standards and geographies involved. It’s important we convene diverse parties, such as Skyroads, Altitude Angel and OneSky, to explore safe and efficient integration of AAM and, more broadly, equitable access to airspace.”
Hyundai Motor Group sourced the three newest Consortium members independently because of their unique approaches, geographic presence and expertise.
- Skyroads (formerly D3 Technologies), a German-based aviation embedded systems developer provides a continuously evolving software/hardware solution for airspace management and air traffic control, as well as flight management, aimed at AAM including human transport; it is based on the principles of system-wide information management and positive deterministic control. “Recognizing design assurance levels for certification can only be achieved with a coordinated combination of vehicles, avionics, communication and operations concepts, Skyroads is building a certifiable open technology infrastructure platform that welcomes and can integrate contributions by ecosystem service and technology providers – so we are delighted to be a part of this consortium with Hyundai Motor Group and select UTM providers,” said Achim Kostron, chief commercial officer, Skyroads.
- Altitude Angel, the U.K.-based unified traffic management provider brings experience in both hardware and software solutions, including its Project Arrow corridor, which features towers, equipped with a ground-to-aircraft system and cameras, for “digital line of sight” on a test corridor near Reading, United Kingdom. “Altitude Angel, like Hyundai Motor Group, is committed to bringing to market the technologies that will make safe and secure advanced air mobility a day-to-day reality,” said Richard Ellis, chief business officer, Altitude Angel. “We’re excited to be part of the Airspace Management Consortium and together tackling and overcoming the challenges ahead.”
- OneSky, a U.S.-based UTM provider, develops airspace assessment, operations, simulation and air traffic management solutions for the aviation industry. The global company will test various advanced air mobility solutions as part of its Consortium participation, including its previously created UTM ConOps in Singapore, as well as its urban air mobility routing and scheduling research it has conducted with NASA. “We are pleased to partner with the Urban Air Mobility Division of Hyundai Motor Group and share our extensive UTM, simulation, and airspace expertise to further advance the industry,” said Bob Hammett, chief executive officer, OneSky. “By joining the Airspace Management Consortium, we’ll have the opportunity to collaborate with like-minded industry leaders to ultimately enable safe, secure, and efficient advanced air mobility operations around the world.”