A UK consortium of companies has launched a two-year, high-intensity autonomous drone operations (HALO) project to develop and test an uncrewed aircraft traffic management system (UTM) capable of integrating around the clock UAV flights at London’s Heathrow Airport.

The UK unit of French aerospace and defense giant Thales is a main member of the Operational Solutions Limited consortium behind the HALO initiative, which will establish a UTM system for routine automated and beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drone flights at Heathrow. 

The effort aims to demonstrate the operational, economic, and societal benefits of UAV activities in even the densest of airspaces to perform routine but vital activities like infrastructure inspections, logistics support, and security operations. It will reach its peak during a four-month trial of the system in a 27/7 rotation of BVLOS activity.

Read: UK government approves 165-mile drone superhighway project

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Source: dronedj.com