U-space Contingency Management Service: Enhancing U-space Volumes Safety

This work proposes an advanced U-space contingency management based on a new U-space strategic service that enhances mission description with a set of alternatives vertiports to be occupied in case of contingency. The new service, closely linked to demand-capacity balance and strategic deconfliction services, assigns safe alternative landing spots by analyzing the planned missions. Two potential solutions are outlined, primarily distinguished by the number of contingency vertiports assigned: contingency management based on assigning a single alternative vertiport to each mission (static) or assigning multiple contingency vertiports that are valid during specific time intervals. It is demonstrated that this improved mission planning can ensure that U-space volumes operate under ultra-safe conditions when encountering unforeseen events, highlighting its importance in high-risk scenarios such as urban air mobility deployments.