Thales Australia and the Swinburne University of Technology’s Aerostructures Innovation Research Hub (AIR Hub) in Melbourne are to partner on R&D for advanced air mobility operational concepts.
The new agreement expands on an existing partnership with the Swinburne University of Technology and will develop Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations for regional cargo delivery and critical infrastructure inspections and eVTOL aircraft. It will also look at CONOPS (concept of operations) for urban vertiports, the integration CONOPS for traditional Air Traffic Management (ATM) and new Unmanned Air Traffic Management (UTM) CONOPS.
The agreement also covers R&D on how ATM systems need to tailor their approach to integrate UTM, while ensuring compatibility and interoperability. This requires a comprehensive understanding of ATM and UTM ecosystems from products to processes through to systems and human factors.
Thales Australia will leverage its experience globally across various programs to advance these new aviation operational concepts, facilitating the development of the local skills required to support the implementation of new technologies. This will help to ensure that the workforce and associated SMEs are ready for the new types of aviation such such as UTM and unmanned BLVOS operations.
Grant Williams, technical director of Thales Australia and New Zealand said, “Thales’ collaboration with Swinburne’s AIR Hub is a natural extension to the R&D Thales has achieved globally in advanced ATM systems.
Swinburne University of Technology’s AIR Hub is a joint industry and academic facility and expert teams.
AIR Hub researchers work on digitalisation, intelligent manufacturing processes, advanced composite materials and advanced air operations with a focus on aerostructures and aircraft development and manufacturing.