The ZenaDrone team recently attended one of the biggest drone conferences in the world. At the Amsterdam Drone Week (ADW) Hybrid on March 29 to 31, 2022, all key players from non-commercial to commercial sectors were invited to showcase their UAV technical innovations.
The event was a collaborative commission by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and RAI Amsterdam, including partners from different organizations worldwide. The 2022 edition formally launched with the theme: “Adding value to society with urban air mobility.”
The international drone community gathered to share its knowledge on current air solutions across various industries. Aside from city and traffic management and urban air mobility, speakers also highlighted international law and regulations on drone use.
The opening day started with various keynote speakers, such as Adina Vãlean from the European Commission, Diana Cooper from Supernal, and Mark Harbers from the Ministerie van Infrastructuur en Waterstaat (Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management). Subsequently, Munish Khurana from EUROCONTROL, Patrick Ky from the EASA, and Paul Riemens of RAI Amsterdam presented.
The first day focused heavily on urban air mobility (UAM) sustainability. Given the increasing number of drone operations in more countries across Europe, collaborations between organizations would make UAM a more feasible reality.
The second day of ADW hybrid focused on workshops discussing drone operations and the integration of VTOL systems, with keynote speakers including Abinaya Kannan from EUROCAE-EUSCG and Jörn Jaeger from Volocopter, and many others.
In line with urban environment applications, drones played critical roles in multi-modal mobility hubs. The energy and utility sectors also saw drones playing pivotal roles in their industries, as expounded by speakers like Antidio Viguria from the Advanced Center of Aerospace Technology (FADA-CATEC) in Spain.
Policy and regulations surrounding licensing training for e-VTOL pilots also came up in a workshop. Speakers like Bertrand Huron from the French Civil Aviation Authority (DGAC/DSAC FR), Daan Dousi from the EASA, and Regine Vadrot from Lilium also led these discussions.
Thursday wrapped up the events with discussions on autonomous drone networks, infrastructure and transportation, and cybersecurity in drone operations. One such discussion was led by keynote speakers Alexandra Florin from Wing, Ayhan Kamil from Exponent Technology Services, Eric van der Berg from Avy, and others.
The role that drones play in maritime infrastructure and transportation increased dramatically. The same went for rail and airport infrastructure.
Later discussions included drones’ roles in precision agriculture, forestry, and risk assessment for both ground and air. Drone cybersecurity and counter-drone operations also became a field of interest due to more drones being operated remotely.
At the ADW Hybrid conference hosted as many as 3,500 speakers spanning 80 nationalities attended and discussed universal regulations and applications for drones.
Dr. Shaun Passley, CEO of ZenaDrone, Inc. together with Simon Henry, Business Development Manager of UK and Aamir Sajjad, Operations Manager of Pakistan, presented the
ZenaDrone 1000 capabilities to feature commercial air mobility, and its benefits to various sectors such as agriculture, medical transport, and search-and-rescue. The event was successful generating leads and piqued interests from drone enthusiasts worldwide.
Like in previous years, ADW Hybrid has worked and will continue to work with various mobile operators on drone applications. The recent turnout shows that the international drone sector has indeed come a long way.