Thales and Gemalto collaborate on remote identification and tracking system for drones

Thales and Gemalto have joined forces to develop a remote identification and tracking system for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) for regulators and law enforcement agencies around the world.

The civilian drone market is characterized by its huge commercial potential, with millions of new drones expected to take to the skies over the next 20 years - the world will go from having tens of thousands of aircraft to having millions, most of which will fly at low altitudes.

PARIS AIR SHOW 17-21 juin 2019

The surge in the number of low-altitude aircraft has made the aviation ecosystem more complex and posed new challenges to aviation safety. Based on this situation, the Civil Aviation Administration will adopt stricter requirements for the registration and identification of unmanned aerial systems (UAS). Adjustments to the regulatory framework will affect how operators plan flight missions, obtain flight permits, and safely identify and track drones.

To this end, Thales and Gemalto have joined forces to develop a remote identification and tracking system for unmanned aerial systems (UAS) for global regulators and law enforcement agencies. Thales has developed an aviation management system to control air traffic for low-altitude targets with flight permissions in controlled airspace, helping customers solve such complex problems. This is a digital cloud platform based on real-time data sharing. Over the past three years, it has been used to connect aviation agencies and optimize operations. With the current integration of the UAV Traffic Management System (UTM), this platform will create automatic mission delivery and flight authorization between regulators and operators.

Gemalto's cyber-protected identity tracking technology will provide civil aviation authorities with a more powerful solution when added to Thales' existing UAV Traffic Management (UTM) platform. The platform provides a "certified drone ID card" that allows managers to verify the drone's registration number, identify its pilot and confirm flight permission, all in seconds. Gemalto's UTM tracker also builds on the existing airspace and regulatory compliance capabilities of Thales' UTM platform.

These capabilities were recently demonstrated in a successful technical trial at the Federal Aviation Administration’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems Test Site at Griffiss International Airport in Rome, New York, in partnership with Oneida County and the Northeast UAV Airspace Integration Research Consortium (NUAIR). The trial demonstrated how secure remote identification and tracking technology can be integrated into Thales’ UTM solution.

“The current aviation ecosystem is not designed to support the growth patterns of the coming decades. Our industry’s goal is to maintain the highest levels of safety standards while meeting the needs of a rapidly evolving market where civil aviation and UAS can coexist. The security and protection of data and equal access to airspace are our biggest challenges.” - Jean Ferre, Vice President, Air Traffic Management, Thales

How does UTM work?

UTM trackers are connected and securely authenticated by the Thales UTM system using security modules and encryption systems via mobile networks or other communication technologies.

The tracker has an embedded GPS for real-time location information and carries anti-jamming functions, which can safely store all information and encryption involved in the mutual authentication process between the UTM platform and the operator. As a result, the remote identification signal can be digitally signed and fully encrypted for command and control communications between the flight controller and the ground control station.

Once the drone's certificate is authenticated, Thales' UTM platform will receive the mission information and confirm it. The UTM platform will then track the drone throughout the flight to ensure it complies with the mission requirements set by the operator and verified by the authorities. If something is not right during this period, the system will send a "non-compliance" alert.