GE Aviation’s Digital Group is the latest partner to join Uber Elevate

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GE Aviation’s Digital Group is the latest ecosystem partner to join Uber Elevate’s aerial ridesharing programme. The initial phase is set to develop requirements for a flight data monitoring programme to support electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicles on the Uber platform.

Initial launch of its Uber Air service is planned for late 2023, at a modest scale and in larger markets, the company’s head of development, Wyatt Smith, told Revolution.Aero.

Flight Data Monitoring (FDM) is the process of analysing and reviewing routinely recorded flight data. Airlines and operators that adopt FDM are better able to identify and eliminate potential safety hazards in flight operations.

“This partnership will help expand our digital innovation as the travel industry continues to evolve,” said Andrew Coleman, general manager of GE Aviation’s Digital Group.

“Safety is a core value for Uber Elevate – we are voluntarily implementing a safety management system and developing voluntary programmes that have yielded proven safety benefits for the aviation industry,” said John Illson, head of aviation safety with Uber Elevate.   

GE’s FDM is used by hundreds of operators worldwide to gather meteorological information, navigation data, and terrain mapping to identify safety events.

The company is also well-positioned thanks to its experience in business aviation. Steve McManus, sales director, GE, told Corporate Jet Investor data is collected from over 80 sensors on jet engines. GE’s C-FOQA (Flight Operational Quality Assurance) reduces risk through its cloud-based tools and advanced backend technology

Mark Moore, chief scientist for Uber Air, said in a panel for the Vertical Flight Society’s Forum: “With this recognition that our certification agencies are constrained, that our developers are constrained to some point, the question begs to be asked: Where do you put your attention? And in my opinion, these statistics clearly show that it’s in such technologies that can reduce that operator error.”