The SESAR Joint Undertaking (SESAR JU) and Japan’s New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) jointly organised a technical workshop in Tokyo this June to bring together European and Japanese experts to exchange knowledge and experience on U-space, innovative air mobility and the integration of new airspace users into the aviation system.
More than 50 experts from across Europe attended, representing research organisations, industry, air navigation service providers and EU institutions, including EUROCONTROL, Unifly, DLR, FREQUENTIS, SAFRAN, TOPVIEW, ENAIRE and CRIDA, alongside representatives from the EU’s External Action Service.
The workshop provided an opportunity for experts to compare progress, share lessons learned and identify areas for future collaboration. Discussions covered U-space implementation, UTM–ATM integration, vertiport operations, drone separation management, detect-and-avoid technologies, dynamic airspace reconfiguration and standardisation.
“The exchanges highlighted the significant progress achieved through SESAR projects and the growing international interest in the European approach to integrating drones and future air mobility services,” SESAR JU said, adding that participants also explored opportunities for deeper collaboration through Horizon Europe and SESAR research activities, following the opening of Horizon Europe to Japanese organisations.
The week concluded with SESAR JU’s participation in Japan Drone 2026, where the organisation hosted a stand and participated in a panel exploring Japanese-European synergies. The event provided an opportunity to showcase European achievements, engage with stakeholders from across the drone ecosystem and strengthen dialogue on the future integration of new airspace users.
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Image: SESAR JU