Study on acceptance of drones

Although SAR drones are welcomed, ambivalence surrounds drones for hobbies or for transporting passengers amid rising safety concerns and demands for privacy, the study found. Surprisingly, general attitudes towards drones improved towards the end of the survey, the authors said. This suggests that more comprehensive information and communication could lead to greater public acceptance.

Acceptance of drones topped the agenda of the first Urban Air Hamburg in early February, hosted by Hamburg Aviation's Windrove network. Stakeholders from across the drone ecosystem came together in the Speicherstadt to discuss the future of urban aviation. All agreed that business models can only be successful, if people are convinced of the technology. This is particularly true in urban areas where airspace is becoming increasingly congested. Almost 78 per cent of Germans live in cities, they are as yet unconvinced. Instead drones are considered disruptive and as intrusions into established structures, experts say.  Naturally, that leads to even more scepticism.

Denise Braemer, Project Lead CITYAM at Hamburg Aviation, has come out in favour of eye level  communication, transparency and information to counter scepticism. Concrete use cases could highlight the benefits of drones. The use of drones to inspect hard-to-reach structures or technical facilities in the Port of Hamburg is a real "Hamburg classic". Events such as an open day at the Hamburg Port Authority's (HPA) new Droneport allow visitors to experience first-hand how innovative drone technology ensures safety in the port.

However, air taxis are unlikely to dot skies over Hamburg in the near future, as companies such as Lilium and Volocopter are in crisis. And Airbus recently announced a temporary halt to the construction of its Cityairbus NextGen air taxi. These setbacks were lamented during the two-day Urban Air Hamburg conference. However, these "Advanced Air Mobility" (AAM) applications have been stigmatised as accessible only to a wealthy elite.  And electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) flights benefit mostly high-income households, according to an analysis by the ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research. Yet, everyone, including the large proportion of the population that does not use Urban Air Mobility (UAM), will be impacted by noise and visual disturbances in the sky, which lowers public acceptance. "But drones are for everyone," the experts agreed. The faster AAM becomes everyday, the more obvious the benefits and the greater the confidence.

The German Ministry of Digital Affairs and Transport (BMDV) is gradually introducing its "Advanced Air Mobility" strategy to improve the integration and acceptance of drones. The first test routes will be operational by 2026. Plans are being laid for designated, narrowly defined geographical AAM areas where unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), eVTOLs and other aircraft will operate simultaneously by 2028. Regional traffic will be added from 2030, followed by a nationwide roll-out of this strategy from 2032. This should lead to a new era in aviation, the ministry believes.
ys/pb