UK drone firms and fire service share one airspace using different traffic systems

Delivery drone companies and a fire service flew coordinated missions in the same UK airspace over Chorley, Lancashire, while using different traffic management systems, the participants said. The demonstration involved ANRA Technologies, Wing, Manna Air Delivery and the Lancashire fire brigade's drone team, and had approval from the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

The operators worked inside a single Temporary Danger Area, a block of airspace set aside for the activity. They flew live missions both beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) and within visual line of sight (VLOS). Before takeoff, they used strategic deconfliction, meaning they exchanged flight plans and identified possible conflicts in advance.

A drone flies above a Polaris utility vehicle at the test site; image provided by Lancashire Fire Rescue. Photo: DRONELIFE

ANRA supplied UAS traffic management (UTM) services for Manna and the fire service, while Wing ran its own vertically integrated UTM system. According to the consortium, the systems exchanged flight intentions using the ASTM F3548-21 standard. Governance structures and open-source automated testing on the InterUSS Platform supported the interoperability.

Work on the project started in May 2025, when the CAA gave a Airspace Modernisation Support Fund grant to the consortium led by ANRA. The money was for the UK's first operational demonstration of support for multiple UTM service providers, according to the consortium.

The consortium said BVLOS flying has historically depended on segregated airspace or individually coordinated operating areas, and that these methods get harder to manage as drone activity grows. The approach tested in Chorley instead lets operators coordinate digitally across different providers.

Building a repeatable framework

The group said the demonstration is part of an industry-led effort to create a common framework that could be used at multiple locations and by multiple operators. Drawing on shared airspace initiatives in the United States, it is adapting international standards and operating practices for the UK. Its work covers technical interoperability, operational procedures, governance, scalable onboarding of operators and regulatory alignment with the CAA.

Giancarlo Buono, group director of the CAA's Safety, Airspace and Regulatory Group, called it the first in-kind demonstration of UTM in the UK. "By working closely with industry, we are building the evidence needed to support routine BVLOS operations and the long-term modernisation of UK airspace," he said.

Alan Hicks, chief technology officer of Manna Air Delivery, said the flights showed that "interoperability works in live operations, not just on paper." Reinaldo Negron, head of UTM at Wing, said the work lays the foundation for a national approach with open frameworks for adding service providers and operators.

Tim Murrell, drone manager at Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service, said involvement from the start helps ensure lower airspace can be prioritised for critical operations while other users still operate safely around emergency crews.

Amit Ganjoo, founder and chief executive of ANRA Technologies, described the Chorley evaluation as an important milestone but only a beginning. The consortium said it will keep working with the CAA and industry partners to refine interoperability, procedures and governance requirements, and plans to add more drone operators and UTM providers.