Our editor-in-chief, Claudia Bacco had the opportunity to speak with Youzec Kurp, Vice President, Airspace Mobility Solutions at Thales to better understand the current status of unmanned traffic management (UTM) and how we progress this topic as an industry. 

The conversation touched on a great deal of material along the spectrum of UTM. Starting off with a basic question: is it an application or an ecosystem? Some of the key areas that are needed to progress the growth of drones include BVLOS and ATM integration. From a BVLOS perspective the podcast considers the challenges facing the full implementation of BVLOS and potential lessons learned from years of BVLOS flights in military aviation. UTM cannot remain an adjacent tool to the ATM infrastructure and needs to be integrated. Where are we with getting to a seamless integrated system of systems for ANSPs to use?

Agility, innovation and fresh thinking from startups in the world of drones can add opportunities for the future. What does Thales think about startups playing a role in future UTM solutions? The company not only works with the civil/military aviation community, but also critical infrastructure organisations. How is this different? And last but not least, who is responsible for drone surveillance?