U-space CORUS

Drone technology is on the rise. To fully support the rapidly growing drone industry, a harmonized approach for the integration of drones into Very Low Level (VLL) airspace is vital. CORUS stands for Concept of Operation for EuRopean UTM Systems. It is a Horizon 2020 project, established within the context of SESAR. Gathering experts from aviation (manned and drone), research and academia, the CORUS consortium will develop and write a concept of operations for U-Space, the European system for management of drones. CORUS aims to address VLL airspace, also including the airspace around airports. Starting from the U-Space blueprint and from the ATM Master Plan update, the project will produce detailed definitions of the services necessary for VLL drone operations over the next two years. The services will be defined in a way that shows how they can and should be used together to enable safe drone operations while balancing the needs of the drone sector with those of society as a whole. An initial architecture description will also be proposed. The project involves nine partner organizations; DFS, DLR, DSNA, ENAV, EUROCONTROL (leading), HEMAV, NATS, Unifly and UPC. CORUS seeks to build a consensus and draw on information and experiences already available. The project activity is centered on 3 workshops that will be held with a wide base of stakeholders, allowing CORUS to build, refine and validate its concept of operations. The next workshop is planned to be held in February 2019. The CORUS consortium recognizes that broad acceptance of the CORUS concept of operation is paramount. To this end, the project invites interested parties to join the “U-space Community Network”. UCN members receive information about the project advancement, provide input on a number of questions to guide the project work and are invited to attend the workshops. If you or your organisation has an interest in entering the community, please contact: corus-info@eurocontrol.int