Continuing U-space ConOps development in the new CORUS five project

The SESAR 3 Joint Undertaking has announced the results of its most recent Exploratory Research call. Among the awarded projects is CORUS five, which will deliver the fifth version of the European U-space Concept of Operations (ConOps). The project follows in the footsteps of its very successful predecessors, CORUS and CORUS-XUAM, in being a pan-European consortium led by the EUROCONTROL Innovation Hub.

CORUS five will focus on the challenges of safely integrating UAS into the same airspace as traditional aviation, addressing airspace that is not presently covered, e.g. above very low level and in the vicinity of controlled airports, with a particular focus on contingency management, risk quantification and flight rules.

The 13 project partners represent a range of U-space stakeholders and their suppliers, including ANSPs, drone operators, U-space service providers, future Common Information Service Providers, R&D and industry. The project team will work for 24 months and then spend six additional months communicating and encouraging the exploitation of the work.

Earlier versions of the U-space Concept of Operations served as a basis for regulations, system development and drone operations in Europe. Between 2017 and 2019, the Concept of Operations for U-Space (CORUS) project produced three versions of the ConOps, reaching consensus in the stakeholder community.

In 2023, the CORUS Extension for Urban Air Mobility project (CORUS-XUAM) released edition four, taking into account the needs of Urban Air Mobility and aligning the ConOps with the European U-space Regulatory Framework.

A strong Advisory Board has been put in place to ensure alignment and uptake of ConOps v5.0 within both the drone and ATM communities. Further outreach will aim to build a stakeholder community that will actively participate in workshops and dialogue. The objective is to better understand requirements and seek consensus on concept elements to ensure the ConOps is safe and feasible, both technically and operationally.

The CORUS five consortium is led by EUROCONTROL and includes AIRBUS, AME - Alliance for New Mobility Europe, Austro Control, Aviant, CRIDA, ENAIRE, Frequentis, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, VTT - Technical Research Centre of Finland, Acubed by Airbus LLC United States, ANRA Technologies and Collins Aerospace.