On 14 May, partners in the SESAR ENSURE project gathered for some paper gaming on solutions to integrate drone traffic safely and securely into the airspace, ahead of the project's first technical validations later this year.

The ENSURE project aims to refine and complete the definition of a common interface and services for U-space and ATM. The project will develop a standardised data model, architecture and an operational methodology. It will also develop a dynamic airspace configuration service to help air traffic management stakeholders in charge of airspace reconfigurations to maintain traffic segregation and to avoid proximity between manned and unmanned aircraft within the designated U-space airspace. 

As the first validations are still months away, the project wanted to simulate an exercise with partners to test and evaluate plans, procedures, and responses in a controlled, discussion-based environment.

The paper game exercise focused on dynamic airspace reconfiguration, one of the solutions under investigation by the project. It brought together a wide range of players: controllers (ENAIRE and LFV), U-space service providers (INDRA, AIRBUS, UNIFLY), drone operators (AEUROCÁMARAS, INECO), CISP (ENAIRE), ATM pilots (INECO and CRIDA) and those analysing and observing the gaming (EUROCONTROL, CRIDA).

The session looked at two different use cases, challenging, and enriching the development of the solution. 

• Dynamic airspace reconfiguration in a scenario involving an advertising aircraft that needed space allocated to drones.
• Dynamic airspace reconfiguration in a scenario where an aircraft experiences an emergency failure and needs to navigate through an active U-space corridor. These situations allowed the partners to examine thoroughly the roles involved, responsibilities, and functionalities necessary to handle such emergencies effectively. 

From these discussions, numerous valuable insights emerged that will further enrich the project’s activities and further validation work.