Frequentis AG: Successful drone test flights in Austria for EU project GOF 2.0

GOF 2.0 - successful test fligts:

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Vienna (pta032/03.10.2022/13:15 UTC+2)

The drone market is growing rapidly and unmanned aerial vehicles, including air taxis, are the next milestone for the development of airborne digital mobility technologies. The SESAR 3 JU project GOF 2.0 Integrated Urban Airspace VLD is developing solutions for the safe and sustainable integration of unmanned aerial vehicles and air taxi operations in urban airspace. In September, an important series of tests took place in Austria, the findings of which mark a milestone for further development.

Fifteen partners from both the scientific community and the drone and aviation industry are working together in the EU project GOF 2.0 to enable safe, orderly, and efficient control of unmanned aerial systems in a manned aviation environment. Interoperability is at the forefront, enabling secure (data) communication between airborne and ground-based systems. This creates a "system of systems" that combines classic air traffic management and new and improved drone-specific services. The international consortium consists of: Estonian Air Navigation Services (EANS), Dimetor, Airbus Urban Mobility GmbH, Aviamaps, CAFA Tech, DroneRadar, EHang, Fintraffic ANS, Frequentis, PCSS Poznańskie Centrum Superkomputerowo-Sieciowe, Polish Air Navigation Services Agency, Robots.Expert, Threod Systems, Unmanned Life, Vaisala.

The basis for an economical and scalable use of this new type of airborne mobility technology is the further integration of airport and port infrastructure, public transport, and logistics centers. In all use cases, the focus is on increasing efficiency compared to ground-based technologies and supporting a seamless transport chain between urban areas and the airports while taking into account the highest safety requirements.

The integrations between partner systems developed as part of the project will be validated in various European countries together with the air traffic control authorities since April 2022. St. Georgen am Ybbsfeld Airport – not far from Amstetten / Lower Austria – was chosen for the Austrian validation. In this trial, among other things, automated parcel delivery at low-altitude and its safe interaction with air taxi flights and conventional air traffic were extensively tested as an example of a realistic use case.

"It is of utmost importance that we can integrate drone traffic control systems directly into our air traffic management systems and ensure a safe and smooth operation," explains Günter Graf, Vice President New Business Development and Innovation at Frequentis, the Austrian GOF 2.0 partner and host of this validation. "Many thanks to our partners for the good cooperation and their attendance with us in Austria. The team is working excellently, and the results are promising."

The results of the GOF2.0 demonstrations underline the technical possibilities as well as the future challenges to integrate simultaneous unmanned flights into urban airspace shared with manned aviation based on the European Commission's initiative to integrate drones into the European airspace.. "GOF2 demonstrations highlight the importance of integrating U-space information directly into drone operator mission control systems", says Jonas Stjernberg, SVP and Partner at Robots.Expert, and continues, "the biggest challenge for the industry and regulators is to ensure that U-space systems are interoperable on a European level."

This project has received funding from the SESAR 3 Joint Undertaking under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101017689. More information can also be found on the project website: www.gof2.eu.

About FREQUENTIS

Frequentis is a global supplier of communication and information systems for control centres with safety-critical tasks. The listed family-run company develops and markets its "control centre solutions" in the Air Traffic Management segment (civil and military air traffic control, air defence) and the Public Safety & Transport segment (police, fire brigades, emergency rescue services, coastguards, port authorities, railways). With a market share of 30%, Frequentis is the world market leader in voice communication systems for air traffic control. Frequentis is also the global leader in aeronautical information management and aeronautical message handling systems.

As a global player with around 2,000 employees (full-time equivalents/FTE), Frequentis has a global network of companies in more than 50 countries. Its head office is in Vienna, Austria. Frequentis' products, services, and solutions are used at more than 40,000 operator working positions in around 150 countries. Shares in Frequentis are traded on the Vienna and Frankfurt stock exchanges; ISIN: ATFREQUENT09, WKN: A2PHG5. In 2021, revenues were EUR 333.5 million and EBIT was EUR 29.0 million.

Wherever Frequentis' systems are used, safety-critical operators bear responsibility for the safety of other people and goods. The company also works towards a more sustainable future through its air traffic optimisation solutions.

For more information, please visit www.frequentis.com.

Barbara Fürchtegott, Head of Communications
barbara.fuerchtegott@frequentis.com, +43 1 81150-4631

Stefan Marin, Head of Investor Relations
stefan.marin@frequentis.com, +43 1 81150-1074

About SESAR 3 JU

The SESAR 3 Joint Undertaking is an institutionalised European partnership between private and public sector partners set up to accelerate through research and innovation the delivery of the Digital European Sky. To do so, it is harnessing, developing and accelerating the take-up of the most cutting-edge technological solutions to manage conventional aircraft, drones, air taxis and vehicles flying at higher altitudes. The SESAR 3 JU partnership brings together the EU, Eurocontrol, and more than 50 organisations covering the entire aviation value chain, from airports, airspace users of all categories, air navigation service providers, drone operators and service providers, the manufacturing industry and scientific community. The partnership also works closely with the regulatory and standardisation bodies, notably EASA and Eurocae, as well as key stakeholders, such professional staff organisations, the space and military communities and global partners.

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Emitter:	Frequentis AG Innovationsstraße 1 1100 Wien Austria
Contact Person:	Stefan Marin
Phone:	+431811501074
E-Mail:	stefan.marin@frequentis.com
Website:	www.frequentis.com
ISIN(s):	ATFREQUENT09 (Share)
Stock Exchange(s):	Vienna Stock Exchange (Official Trade)
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