Korean Air Participates in '2022 Drone Show Korea'... "Operating UAM Experience Zone"

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Hyun-seok] Korean Air announced that it will participate in the '2022 Drone Show Korea' held at BEXCO in Busan for three days from the 24th to the 26th.

'2022 Drone Show Korea' is hosted by Busan Metropolitan City, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Ministry of Science and ICT, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and the Ministry of National Defense, marking its 6th edition this year.

Korean Air is participating on the largest scale among exhibiting companies. It plans to showcase its capabilities as an aerospace system integrator and present its future aerospace business direction and vision through exhibits including a medium-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) the size of a civilian aircraft, a vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) reconnaissance UAV, a multipurpose hybrid drone, an inspection drone, as well as an innovative urban air mobility (UAM) solution.

The highlight of this event is the UAM experience zone. Korean Air has created a traffic management operator responsible for control functions, an operator responsible for flight planning and monitoring, and simulators for UAM piloting experience, allowing visitors to directly engage and experience these features.

Additionally, Korean Air will unveil a teaser video of its cargo drone, targeted for development completion by 2026. Based on a hybrid propulsion system, the cargo drone supports automatic flight and remote control, with a maximum flight speed of 150 km/h and a payload capacity of 250 kg, classifying it as a medium-sized drone. Korean Air plans to develop the airframe and payload modules separately to enable various missions ranging from civilian and military cargo transport to surveillance and attack.

Meanwhile, Korean Air will sign memorandums of understanding (MOUs) at this event with 'Innodep' for 'platform solution commercialization using hybrid drones' and with 'Vessel Aerospace' for 'development of tactical VTOL UAVs.' Through these partnerships, Korean Air aims to revitalize the domestic UAV industry ecosystem by fostering mutual growth with specialized companies.

Korean Air plans to proactively create demand for UAM and drones while leading the development of ▲ stealth attack unmanned/manned combat aircraft capable of solo missions and ▲ manned-unmanned teaming aircraft, based on its accumulated technology as the nation's top UAV system integrator.