Unmanned aircraft system traffic management

Unmanned aircraft system traffic management (UTM) is an air traffic management ecosystem under development for autonomously controlled operations of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) by the FAA, NASA, other federal partner agencies, and industry. They are collaboratively exploring concepts of operation, data exchange requirements, and a supporting framework to enable multiple UAS operations beyond visual line-of-sight at altitudes under 400 ft above ground level in airspace where FAA air traffic services are not provided.

UTM is separate from but complementary to the FAA's Air Traffic Management (ATM) system. UTM development will ultimately identify services, roles/responsibilities, information architecture, data exchange protocols, software functions, infrastructure, and performance requirements for enabling the management of low-altitude uncontrolled UAS operations.^[2]

A Research Transition Team (RTT) has been established between the FAA, NASA and industry to coordinate the UTM initiative. Areas of focus include concept and use case development, data exchange and information architecture, communications and navigation, and sense and avoid. Research and testing will identify airspace operations requirements to enable safe visual and beyond visual line-of-sight UAS flights in low-altitude airspace. FAA published a UAS Traffic Management Research Plan in 2017.^[3]

The FAA on July 18 released its Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) Implementation Plan, which provides the steps it, and others, will need to take to safely enable AAM operations as part of UTM. ^[4]

^ Vinogradov, Evgenii; Minucci, Franco; Pollin, Sofie (2020). "Wireless Communication for Safe UAVs: From Long-Range Deconfliction to Short-Range Collision Avoidance". IEEE Vehicular Technology Magazine. 15 (2): 88–95. arXiv:1910.13744. doi:10.1109/MVT.2020.2980014.
^ Baum, Michael S. (2021). Unmanned aircraft systems traffic management : utm. [S.l.]: CRC Press. ISBN 978-1-000-37951-8. OCLC 1258660339.
^ UAS Traffic Management Research Plan
^ Host, Pat (1 July 2023). "Industry Clamors for UAS Traffic Management Regulatory Framework". Avionics International. Retrieved 17 December 2023.

[UTM_magazine-1] Vinogradov, Evgenii; Minucci, Franco; Pollin, Sofie (2020). "Wireless Communication for Safe UAVs: From Long-Range Deconfliction to Short-Range Collision Avoidance". IEEE Vehicular Technology Magazine. 15 (2): 88–95. arXiv:1910.13744. doi:10.1109/MVT.2020.2980014.

[2] Baum, Michael S. (2021). Unmanned aircraft systems traffic management : utm. [S.l.]: CRC Press. ISBN 978-1-000-37951-8. OCLC 1258660339.

[3] UAS Traffic Management Research Plan

[4] Host, Pat (1 July 2023). "Industry Clamors for UAS Traffic Management Regulatory Framework". Avionics International. Retrieved 17 December 2023.

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