SESAR acknowledges shortfall in RPAS integration funding

3 Mar 2015 By Beth Stevenson - FG

Brussels - The European Commission’s future air traffic management initiative has only one-third of the budget required to carry out the full integration of remotely piloted air systems (RPAS) into European airspace, a senior representative has acknowledged.

Speaking at the AUVSI Unmanned Systems conference in Brussels on 3 March, Denis Koehl, senior advisor for military affairs on the Single European Sky ATM Research (SESAR) programme, explains that it is some €110 million ($123 million) short of the required amount for full unmanned air vehicle integration.

The disclosure comes ahead of a commission-sponsored conference on the future of ATM, due to begin on 5 March in Latvia. This is expected to produce decisions on the commitment that the EU will make towards the integration of UAVs into the SESAR programme.

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