UAM Glossary is out!

The AiRMOUR glossary explaining the key terms of Urban Air Mobility is now out.

The AiRMOUR project has published a glossary of Urban Air Mobility. The glossary includes ca. 50 key terms and it is part of the AiRMOUR deliverable 2.1 ‘Foresight analysis and UAM EMS integration process management’.

Other EU-funded UAM projects have contributed to the glossary, i.e. AMU-LED, CORUS-XUAM, FLYING FORWARD 2020, GOF 2.0, SAFIR-Med and TindAIR. Together with the AiRMOUR project, they form a group which has been working on #UAMExplained glossary and campaigning. The #UAMExplained group’s glossary is to be finalised and published in the form of a brochure in the first quarter of 2022.

The AiRMOUR project works across the domains of aviation, urban & regional planning and management and emergency & non-emergency medical services. The glossary helps different stakeholder groups to find shared terminology and understanding for the discussions of Urban Air Mobility.

See the AiRMOUR Urban Air Mobility glossary

The report produced by University Medical Center Groningen builds bridges between novel forms of aviation and healthcare.

The AiRMOUR project has published a report on functional requirements for selected manned and unmanned UAM Emergency Medical Services scenarios. The partner responsible for the deliverable is University Medical Center Groningen and it is part of the AiRMOUR work package called ‘Emergency Medical Services UAM concept description’.

The purpose of the report is to select and define generic urgent medical use cases where UAM (Urban Air Mobility) is a transportation concept that is specifically created to move people and goods. It is done in the lower-level airspace (<150m height) of metropolitan areas using electric novel vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft.

Secondly, the report zooms in on partner cities and regions within the AiRMOUR project and proposes valuable UAM urgent medical use cases. The suggestions are based on the input of local stakeholders, for example from the medical sector, city authorities and research entities.

“The report starts with the common history of aviation and healthcare and explains how they work together at present. It then continues to explain the new aircraft that the aviation sector is creating and explores new healthcare use cases based on the new types of aircraft”, says Innovation Manager Jaap Hatenboer from University Medical Center Groningen.

All use cases in the report can be characterised by two main features. The first feature is the type of cargo, which can either be a medical product, like equipment, blood, or samples or “human cargo”, such as medical specialists or patients. The second feature is the possibility to provide a predetermined landing zone for potential aircraft use (for example between two medical facilities) or ad hoc destinations (such as accident sites).

The report defines four generic UAM urgent medical use cases. The use cases are characterised by the type of vehicle (small unmanned aircraft, sUA or passenger carrying eVTOL) and the type of landing zone (interfacility or ad-hoc).

The requirements include infrastructure, aircraft capabilities, regulatory or knowledge-based infrastructure and operational requirements. All use cases are defined by functional requirements which provide guidelines on how to set up and operate such use cases for the highest value proposition. The requirements are detailed concerning a viable and a minimum viable system (MVS). The viable system describes a future system neglecting implementation hurdles offering the maximum value proposition to the customer (i.e., the healthcare system). The MVS makes a trade-off compared to the viable system allowing for early commercial application.

“The main challenge with the report was to create a common understanding between ‘aviation’ and ‘healthcare’”, says Hatenboer. “We will continue to improve and deepen the level of understanding through this project”.

See the AiRMOUR deliverable 2.2 ‘Functional requirements for selected manned and unmanned UAM EMS scenarios’ (pdf)

For further information, please contact:

UMCG Ambulancezorg

Jaap Hatenboer, j.hatenboer(at)rav.nl

Jannik Krivohlavek, j.krivohlavek(at)rav.nl

EU-funded projects Flying Forward 2020, AiRMOUR and AURORA, have initiated a collaborative network of Urban Air Mobility (UAM) development programmes. This new coalition creates an end-to-end chain of Urban Air Mobility innovations and developments to improve the current urban airspace transport system in European cities. 

The Urban Air Mobility (UAM) industry in Europe has grown rapidly in recent years, owing to Research and Development (R&D) investments from organisations, academia, governments and the European Commission. The goal of these R&D activities is to provide cities with safe and efficient solutions, resulting in reduced carbon footprint. Using very-low altitude zero emission passenger or cargo-carrying drones enables cities to improve the quality of life of their citizens. 

Currently, there is an urban airspace ecosystem consisting of various initiatives and EU-funded projects, working independently or in smaller networks on developing and incorporating these solutions to different sectors of city infrastructures and regulatory frameworks. However, for this ecosystem to become sustainable and have a long-term impact on European cities and their inhabitants, there is a need to establish a more comprehensive coalition. Combining efforts offers an opportunity to gain a broader perspective, resulting in an integral vision and better aligned outcomes.

The common purpose of this collaborative network – supported by UAM initiatives SESAR JU and UIC2 – is not only to establish an ecosystem of Urban Air Mobility solutions, but also to increase stakeholder and public knowledge and acceptance of these new developments and solutions. It also provides opportunities to exploit the synergy between each project and the associated demonstrator cities.

Joining forces provides benefits to all parties of this ever-expanding coalition and facilitates the strengthening of these relationships. Joint activities of this network will include the following tasks:

In the coming years the projects will showcase interesting real-life demonstrations, state of the art technologies and will work on improving UAM regulatory frameworks.

Regulation can be swiftly outpaced by technology. As urban airspace operations are continuously evolving, valid questions regarding safety and possible bottlenecks will continue to be raised, which is why it remains imperative to maintain an open dialogue with European Member States and regulating bodies. This collaborative network builds, integrates and aligns technology, along with EU-compliant interoperability, governance model and legal frameworks. This will help to address any concerns in a unified approach for a common purpose.

Joining forces also delivers a unique opportunity to craft an efficient urban airspace transport system building on living lab results. The knowledge gained from these demonstrators makes it possible for cities to achieve decreased pollution levels, reduced transportation time, less congestion on the ground and improved emergency medical services, to name a few.

Ultimately, the focal ambition of this collaborative network between FF2020, AiRMOUR and AURORA is to expand knowledge and awareness in cities and increase public acceptance of Urban Air Mobility developments. The mutual goal is to break through current European environmental, societal, economic and technological barriers in order to positively impact the lives of all members of all European communities.

Stay informed with all the new developments of this collaborative network by visiting the sibling project websites and social media accounts. The next joint statement will be published in September to announcing joining sibling projects, as well as to elaborate on shared activities and approach.

For further information, contact:

AiRMOUR, Anne-Mari Sandell, anne-mari.sandell(at)forumvirium.fi

Flying Forward 2020, Nathy Ercol, nathy(at)digie.expert

AURORA, Sandra Lima, sandra.lima(at)epf.eu

Download the Joint Statement in a pdf here.

As populations grow, traditional traffic infrastructure is pushed to its limits. Mobility is, therefore, expanding into the third dimension – the airspace. AiRMOUR is a research and innovation project supporting sustainable air mobility in urban contexts via emergency and medical services. The project will test both manned and unmanned drones in real-life conditions in 2023.

The EU-funded AiRMOUR project focuses on the research and validation of novel concepts and solutions to make urban air mobility safe, secure, quiet and green, yet also more accessible, affordable and publicly accepted. As the airspace opens up for new transportation systems, new forms of Urban Air Mobility (UAM), such as passenger drones, are gaining more attention. Similar to the adaptation process of electric cars, there are challenges to overcome related to technology regulations, for example.

In order to tackle these challenges, a great deal more research is needed and cities need to integrate air mobility into their urban planning processes and acquire suitable tools for this. The AiRMOUR project drastically advances the understanding of necessary near-future actions – not only by urban communities, but also by operators, regulators, academia and businesses.

The AiRMOUR project aims to tackle one of the most critical real-life applications of urban air mobility, namely Emergency Medical Services. Within the AiRMOUR project, personal air vehicles for doctors and medical supplies are validated in real-life demonstrations in Stavanger (Norway), Helsinki (Finland), the region of Nord-Hessen (Germany) and in simulation in Luxemburg.

Main outputs of the AiRMOUR project:

With the help of these tools, each European local cluster of aviation and urban actors will be able to set-up their own UAM realisation. Furthermore, European policymaking, U-space planning and investments will be reinforced as a consequence of AiRMOUR activity, findings and new knowledge.

“We have several unique elements in the AiRMOUR project, starting from the main outputs, such as the Urban Air Mobility toolbox and trainings. Their pragmatic design brings European cities quickly up to speed in UAM application. Furthermore, the emergency medical service implementation has great potential. Drones are a superior option when, for example, providing remote islands or congested urban areas with critical care”, says Project Coordinator Petri Mononen from VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland.

The AiRMOUR consortium will directly involve the cities and, therefore, ensure that the tools provided are of optimal use and that the impacts can be replicated widely. The consortium has a total of 13 partners, including research institutes, aviation authorities, UAM operators and Emergency Medical Service organisations. Furthermore, the AiRMOUR project will have 10 replicator cities, and an External Advisory Board with strong international support from organisations, such as NASA, Dubai Future Foundation and EASA, in addition to other endorsing bodies.

The three-year AiRMOUR project began on 1 January 2021 and has received funding of approximately €6 million from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme.

AiRMOUR Project Coordinator
Dr. Petri Mononen
Principal Scientist
VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd
+358 40 5155 808
[email protected]

AiRMOUR Communication Lead
Anne-Mari Sandell
Communication Specialist
Forum Virium Helsinki
+358 40 903 1922
[email protected]