SAFIR-Med
Safe and flexible integration of advanced U-space services focusing on medial air mobility
Provider: SESAR Joint Undertaking, topic: SESAR-VLD2
Duration: 12/2020 – 3/2023
Project Webpage: https://www.sesarju.eu/projects/SAFIR-Med
Description:
The SAFIR-Med project’s vision was to achieve safe, sustainable, socially accepted, and socially beneficial urban air mobility. SAFIR-Med represented all value chain actors and stakeholders as either project partners (ATC, USPs, Operators, UAS Manufacturers, cities) or formal associate partners (major customers, technology and service providers) at a representative international level. Five unmanned UAV platforms (passenger eVTOL, hydrogen fuel cell VTOL, AED medical drone, X8 medical transport) were combined with manned aviation in real-life exercises validating technology in actual urban environments. The technologies of all partners were leveraged to enable the use of the maximum number of U-space services for the highest possible operational safety level, including advanced Detect and Avoid U-space services.
The demonstrations took place in the cities of Antwerp (BE), Aachen (DE), and Heerlen (NL), leveraging the MAHHL trans-border region, following a full de-risking exercise at the DronePort BVLOS test facility in Sint-Truiden, Belgium. The demonstration results were further virtually enhanced through large-scale simulations to test the maximum airspace capacity of the CONOPS. Project outcomes were validated and made representative for the entire EU by simulating demonstrations in two additional European locations: Athens, Greece (Southern EU) and Prague, Czech Republic (Eastern EU). Lessons learned were documented in a Performance Assessment and Recommendations Report, refining current U-space architecture principles and creating measurable indicators for UAM. These outcomes supported Smart Cities in incorporating UAM into their transport roadmaps, contributed to standardization, and promoted safety. Ultimately, SAFIR-Med made a significant contribution to the EU healthcare system by supporting equitable access to quality medical services in the future.
AgentFly Technologies Role:
AgentFly Technologies (AFT) played a pivotal technical role in the SAFIR-Med project by leading the development of high-fidelity simulation environments and digital twin models to validate U-space services in complex urban airspace. Their work supported airspace capacity assessment across four European cities, enabling risk-free evaluation of traffic strategies, scalability, and system robustness. AFT also created digital replicas of UAV platforms for pre-demonstration testing and real-time monitoring, ensuring operational reliability. Their simulations informed regulatory recommendations and standardization efforts, contributing to the project's performance assessment, safety validation, and business sustainability planning. AFT’s tools and insights proved essential for de-risking real-world demonstrations and enabling future integration of drones into shared airspace.
