In recent years, the performance of UAVs has been greatly improved, and the scope of application is expected to expand to air passenger transportation. The picture shows the launch of UAV passenger transportation services in Dubai.

(Associated Press file photo)

[Reporter Zhong Lihua/Taipei Report] In recent years, the performance of drones has been greatly improved, and the scope of application is expected to expand to air passenger transportation and air taxis, forming a new service model for urban air mobility (UAM). In the road map 2.0 of the development of my country's drones in the transportation field in the "White Paper", short-, medium- and long-term promotion measures for UAM sandbox verification are drawn up in combination with inter-ministerial meetings, and UAM is expected to be gradually developed on the basis of safety and pragmatism. Proposed promotion strategies and development paths in the transportation field.

The Ministry of Communications submitted the "Urban Air Traffic Report" to the Legislative Yuan, pointing out that in order to improve transportation efficiency, the international community has recently developed urban air traffic vehicles with vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) capabilities. It can take off and land, which can save passenger traffic time.

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According to the Ministry of Communications, at this stage, most of the international UAM manufacturers are still in the prototype development stage, and only a few have reached the actual field test stage. Specifications such as verification and supervision are not yet complete, and market acceptance is also considered, so it has not yet been promoted to a fully autonomous flight mode.

For example, the German start-up Volocopter completed its flight test in Singapore at the end of 2019 and is expected to provide passenger services in 2023.

Volocopter's manned UAV has obtained the design approval of the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) at the end of 2019. With the recognition of EASA certification by the Singapore government, it can also be quickly introduced into Singapore to perform services in the future.

According to the report, according to the research of the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the possible future operating modes of manned drones are "air taxis" and "air mass transportation". In the stage of technology research and development and proof of concept.

The Ministry of Communications stated that my country's airspace is small, especially in urban areas where there are many tall buildings. In the future, various vehicles such as drones, traditional rotorcraft, and fixed-wing aircraft will coexist. It is an important issue for the industry to formulate flight rules applicable to VTOL. One, including the stability of navigation and positioning systems during flight, isolation from aircraft, communication, and airspace integration, are currently the main concerns of airspace management.

In addition to the technical aspect, there is also a need for coordination and communication in terms of laws and regulations, supervision systems, and social acceptance. Among them, laws and regulations are a major issue in the development of manned drones.

The operation mode of manned drones is quite different from that of existing aircraft, and the relevant flight specifications and management methods still need to be internationally agreed to facilitate compliance, such as drone flight management systems, operator certification, vehicle testing, and infrastructure , community noise, etc.