Czech Republic and AirMap Announce SmartSky

AirMap, the leading global airspace management platform for drones, announced that it is working with Air Navigation Services of the Czech Republic (ANS CR) nationwide in partnership with UpVision to enable SmartSky, the country’s strategy to enable and support the safe operation of drones and the development of drone-related services.

Launched in 2018, the Smart Sky concept outlines a nationwide strategy for the utilization of UAS, or drones, in the Czech Republic, including regulation and its enforcement, international cooperation, and development and deployment of infrastructure and services for UAS Traffic Management, or UTM.

The announcement builds on an earlier release by the companies in August 2018, in which ANS CR deployed the AirMap UTM platform with UpVision’s localization and technical support to manage authorizations for drone flights in the controlled airspace around Václav Havel Airport in Prague. Today, airspace managers have a comprehensive view of their managed national airspace and can configure, monitor, and automate their management with the easy-to-use UTM dashboard.

Operators in the Czech Republic can use a mobile application, powered by AirMap, to access U-space services that have been localized to the Czech language. ANS CR and AirMap are working with local partner UpVision to provide translation services and promote UAS education and research in the field.

Together, AirMap, ANS CR, and UpVision will develop a roadmap that sets the stage for the enablement of a fully operational drone traffic management system in 2020 and beyond through Smart Sky. ANS CR will ensure that all categories of drones and all types of missions can safely take flight in the Czech Republic’s airspace with a system that includes:

• E-registration and e-identification for users and drones;
• Pre-tactical geofencing and flight planning;
• Automated and manual digital airspace authorization;
• Real-time traffic alerts for drone pilots and live drone telemetry for airspace managers;
• Connectivity and communication between drone pilots and airspace administrators;
• Other services to enable simultaneous flights in shared airspace.

“Fulfillment of the ambitious goals arising from our Smart Sky concept depends very much on the experience, enthusiasm and competence of all cooperating partners.” commented Jan Klas, Director General of ANS CR. “Therefore we (ANS CR) appreciate very much that AirMap and UpVision are supporting us on this journey.”

“We are changing the environment in Czech Republic by enabling safe drone operations and unlocking its value through Smart Sky for business in large scale,” commented Stepan Alexa, Managing Director of UpVision. “Never has the opportunity been greater. It’s very exciting.”

“By opening up more airspace we are helping give rise to a new drone economy,” said Ben Marcus, AirMap co-founder and Chairman. “The Czech Republic is among the global first movers in the race to capture a share of the tremendous opportunity that drones represent as they become more and more a part of our everyday lives.”

About AirMap

AirMap is the world’s leading airspace management platform for drones. Millions of drones, hundreds of industry developers, and hundreds of airspace managers and stakeholders rely on AirMap’s airspace intelligence and services to fly safely and communicate with others in low-altitude airspace. AirMap connects the majority of the world’s drones to airspace authorities through integrations with major drone manufacturers such as DJI, Intel, senseFly, Matternet, 3DR, DroneDeploy, and more. Deployed in Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, and the United States, AirMap leads the industry in delivering technology solutions for Unmanned aerial system (UAS) Traffic Management (UTM) and U-space to enable safe and responsible drone operations at scale.

About Air Navigation Services of the Czech Republic

The mission of ANS CR is to take part in the provision of safe, cost-effective, long-term sustainable aviation navigation services in an environment of evolving functional airspace blocks. In the dynamic air transportation environment, its services are designed to meet the expectations of all users with regard to current and future demand at both the national level and that of the European ATM development context. One of the key foundations of air navigation services provision is to ensure safety. For this reason, ANS CR strives to maintain exceptional safety standards of services provided regardless of the air traffic volume. Safety is a top priority for the company, which takes precedence over commercial, operational and other goals.

About UpVision

UpVision is the European UAS service provider and leader on the Czech market in UAS services. UpVision co-founded the Czech Unmanned Aerial Alliance (UAVA) and has been actively developing the Unmanned Traffic Management community in the Czech Republic by introducing their UTM application for more than 3 years. Since the early stages of the company, UpVision has been very active in UAS education and research field by running joint programs with a number of universities and research institutes across Europe. There are a number of innovative UAS applications of drones, publications, and awards as a result of these activities, such as recognition by European Satellite Navigation Competition.