Coventry City Council will be leading a project known as Urban Ascent
Coventry City Council is spearheading an initiative to prepare the way for drone and air taxi operations in the UK. Urban Ascent will bring together leading organisations in research and technology to design sustainable drone systems.
Work is underway to develop a city-wide blueprint for integrating drones and eVTOL aircraft into urban areas such as Coventry. Drones could speed up the delivery of samples, medicines, and other NHS supplies, thereby enhancing medical logistics.
Automation powered by new technology may also make road and bridge inspections quicker and easier to manage. Firm Innovate UK and the Department for Transport are funding the project.
Councillor Jim O'Boyle, Cabinet Member for Jobs, Regeneration and Climate Change, said: “Coventry is already leading the way when it comes to drones and their future use in all sorts of areas, and this project will see us take the next step in aligning technology with public needs.”
He continued: “Here we are talking about things like drones being used to fly urgent medical supplies between hospitals, being used to inspect bridges and roads, and even using them to enable an overview of things like road accidents and road congestion. We are proud to help shape the next chapter of UK aviation from the heart of Coventry.”
Urban Ascent is skipping live trials to focus on building the frameworks that will enable future drone operations in the UK. Plans include building a business case for urban air mobility and assessing regulatory and infrastructure readiness, including vertiport planning.
Mariya Tarabanovska, Innovation Lead at Innovate UK, said: “It is a strong example of how local authorities, industry, and academia can come together to prepare for the safe and scalable integration of new aviation services which benefit local communities and drive growth across the UK.”
https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/council-leading-new-coventry-drone-32941678 
