Over the past few weeks, Scottish company Flowcopter has been testing large cargo drones in a unique drone airspace above HCA Airport. This was the first outdoor flight test for the Flowcopter, which chose HCA Airport as its European test base.
Over the past few weeks, a very special drone has been spotted over Odense HCA Airport in Denmark. It was part of a trio of FC100 drones that Scottish drone manufacturer Flowcopter built last year to validate its new class of Uncrewed Air Systems.
Flowcopter chose Danish Airports and the UAS Denmark Test Center as test bases for the development of the FC100 cargo drone for use in logistics, maritime and agricultural applications.
The Danish test flight was the first to take place outside the UK and outdoors.
“We will complete technical readiness testing and return home, and we will implement a design freeze to share this model with several interested customers,” said Uwe Stein, Technical Director at Flowcopter.
Easy Flight Clearance
He explains why HCA Airport was chosen as a testing base due to its excellent testing facilities combined with easy approval procedures. Danish authorities contributed to efficient case handling.
“We found the flight permit application process to be incredibly smooth, thanks to the incredible support from the Danish Civil Aviation and Railways Authority. It was also of great help to us that the UAS Danish Test Center provided us with advice and experience in preparing the risk analysis for flight clearance,” says Uwe Stein.
Can lift up to 100kg
Flowcopter's “FC100” heavy-duty cargo cargo drone, internally referred to as a “utility helicopter” or “uUAS,” is designed to provide high lifting capacity over long distances. Specifically, the drone can lift a weight of 100 kg and fly a distance of 200 km for up to 3 hours.
These flight tests at the UAS Denmark Test Center demonstrate Flowcopter's technology, providing a roadmap towards uUAS capable of carrying more than 300 kg over long distances.
Flowcopter's uUAS is an entirely new class of aircraft that uses rugged, inexpensive hydraulic drives to control propellers at a fraction of the weight of similar electrical systems.
This is made possible by efficient and fast control response Digital Displacement® pump-driven hydraulic motors.
Early adopters of Flowcopter drones will be operators in areas such as agriculture, offshore wind, and search and rescue operations. Flowcopter is already speaking to end users in a wide range of freight logistics applications.
Easy gateway to Europe
“We are delighted that Flowcopter has chosen HCA Airport and the UAS Denmark Test Center as its European test base. This highlights that we can offer a powerful combination of good test facilities and easy access to get drones in the air,” says Michael Larsen, Head of UAS Denmark Test Center.
He added that Flowcopter, a non-EU company, can now use the license it obtained in Denmark in the remaining EU countries.
“In this way we become an easy point of entry into the European market for drone companies looking to operate in the EU and we are ready to help Flowcopter and others in the same situation,” said Michael Larsen.