Airservices Australia is preparing for an anticipated influx of drones over the next 20 years with the appointment of Frequentis Australasia to develop world-leading, digital air traffic management to safely integrate millions of uncrewed aircraft flights into Australia’s busy airspace.

A new analysis commissioned by Airservices predicts that drone flights in Australia will surge from around 1.5 million currently to more than 60 million by 2043, requiring the latest technologies to manage the significant increase in air traffic. Frequentis has been selected to develop a Flight Information Management System (FIMS) that will enable Airservices to seamlessly incorporate drones, air taxis and other uncrewed aircraft into Australian airspace.

The FIMS will enable Airservices to share flight information between air traffic control, traditional aircraft, and uncrewed airspace users.

Airservices chief executive Jason Harfield said the new system would support the safe integration of current and future air traffic with the rapid growth of uncrewed aircraft, adding: “Drones are the biggest growth area in aviation.”

Frequentis Australia managing director Martin Rampl said “We are looking forward to working with Airservices to jointly develop the system, pushing technological innovation in the uncrewed aviation domain, including the ability to integrate new services in the future.”
Subscribe to the FINN weekly newsletter