Airbus and the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) have agreed to a further collaboration to prepare the way to launch urban air mobility (UAM) services in the Southeast Asian country. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) announced on February 11 aims to “bring UAM services and platforms to reality in Singapore’s urban environment, with the target to enhance industry productivity and improve the country’s regional connectivity.”

The MoU was signed during the Singapore Air Show by CAAS director-general Kevin Shum and Jean-Brice Dumont, the Airbus group’s executive vice president for engineering. Under the agreement, Airbus will collaborate with the CAAS on an unmanned aircraft system to be used in an “initial” UAM service.

Both parties will cooperate on development of the unmanned traffic management system that will be needed “to support the initial use-case.” The partners will also develop standards and safety frameworks as well as “on fostering public acceptance.” They will also study the feasibility and requirements for further UAM services that might include cargo and passenger transportation.

In 2016, Airbus and CAAS started working together on the Skyways trials using an unmanned aircraft to prove the feasibility of unmanned aerial delivery systems in dense urban environments. They subsequently signed an agreement with the European Union Aviation Safety Agency to jointly develop operational and safety standards for UAS flights within cities.

Last year, Airbus conducted proof-of-concept trials in which parcels were delivered on the campus of the National University of Singapore and parts and consumable goods were flown out to ships anchored off Singapore. Now the Skyways aircraft will be used as a flying test laboratory to evaluate connectivity and navigation technology to support unmanned traffic management to allow eVTOL air taxi aircraft and drones to use the same airspace.

“CAAS supports the beneficial development of UAM,” commented Shum. “It fits within our Smart Nation vision, where we aim to take full advantage of technology to solve problems, address challenges, and develop Singapore into one of the most outstanding cities in the world to live in.”

In October 2019, CAAS approved eVTOL aircraft developer Volocopter to conduct a flight demonstration of its all-electric 2X model over Singapore’s Marina Bay. The German company also unveiled a mockup of its Skyport passenger terminal that would be used to support air taxi services.

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