GSMA, partners target drone airspace safety
GSMA and a group of aviation, security and connectivity companies called for industry alignment on drone identification, tracking and connection in a bid to build safer airspaces.
In a Joint Requirements Statement developed through the GSMA’s Fusion initiative, contributors including Ericsson, Nokia, Viasat, NextNav and the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre set out the role of mobile networks in supporting drone operations. The organisations urged operators, regulators, aviation stakeholders and governments to integrate telecom capabilities in future drone and airspace policy.
The group said mobile networks could support drone identity, authentication, geolocation, real-time telemetry assurance, prioritised connectivity and cross-border interoperability. It also pointed to Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN) as a key resilience tool for drone operations, especially in areas beyond traditional coverage for remote, maritime, disaster recovery and national security related missions.
Programmable network capabilities and APIs, including GSMA Open Gateway and CAMARA-aligned frameworks, were also tipped as tools to support aviation safety, security and efficiency requirements.
The statement emphasised the importance of electronic conspicuity, the identification and visibility of drones and aircraft to airspace users and authorities through real-time data sharing. Indeed, the group highlighted the growing importance of drone tracking as governments and regulators step up the deployment of flights beyond the visual line of sight, drone first responder programmes and autonomous aircraft.
A lack of early coordination could leave the sector with fragmented national approaches before global drone frameworks are established, the group warned.
Barney Stinton, GSMA Fusion market development lead for aviation, said the drone market is “scaling far faster than many of today’s airspace and identification frameworks were originally designed for”, adding the statement is “an important signal from industry that mobile networks have a major role to play in supporting safe, trusted and interoperable drone operations at scale”.
He explained the goal is “not to replace existing aviation systems but to bring together aviation, government and telecom industries early enough to avoid fragmentation”.
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