How can low-altitude flights be made "operable, visible, and manageable"? Wuhu is taking the lead in exploring a safe pathway for low-altitude aviation.

At the Emerging Air Economy Development Conference held last September, Wuhu officially launched its low-altitude intelligent connectivity system, establishing the nation's first city-level low-altitude intelligent connectivity framework. After six months of development, over 150 sets of infrastructure for low-altitude communication, navigation, and surveillance have been deployed across key areas and critical locations throughout the city. The ground network has begun to take shape, creating the country's first city-level "one network, one center, one platform" low-altitude intelligent connectivity system. This has successfully achieved the core objective of making low-altitude aircraft "operable, visible, and manageable," providing a replicable and scalable "Wuhu model" for the development of city-level low-altitude intelligent connectivity systems across the country.

On the afternoon of March 23, reporters visited the Wuhu Low-Altitude Intelligent Connectivity Center in Wanzhi District. On a large screen, a three-dimensional map clearly displayed the entire cityscape, with no-fly zones, restricted areas, and permitted flight zones prominently marked and easily distinguishable.

"Currently, we have deployed over 150 detection devices across the city, enabling precise positioning of airborne aircraft," said Zhu Baojuan, General Manager of Wuhu Low-Altitude Intelligent Connectivity Aviation Technology Co., Ltd. Once an aircraft enters the monitoring area, it will be tracked in real time, with its speed, altitude, location, and heading all under full surveillance. Reporters saw on the large screen that on that day, the city had monitored a total of 301 flight operations, with four aircraft currently in the air.

Without safety, there is no low-altitude economy. Safety is the lifeline of low-altitude economic development. As a pilot and demonstration zone for the low-altitude economy industry in Anhui Province, Wuhu is accelerating the development of its low-altitude economy while swiftly establishing robust low-altitude safety defenses.

Alongside strengthening the safety foundation, Wuhu continues to enhance its low-altitude infrastructure layout and optimize the allocation of low-altitude resources. The platform has integrated over 4,000 square kilometers of approved airspace, 27 takeoff and landing points, and 11 air routes. It also incorporates multi-source data, including 3D realistic maps, building models, and waterway networks, to further refine the low-altitude digital foundation. This provides highly reliable, low-latency support for various low-altitude application scenarios.

Zhu Baojuan introduced that while strictly adhering to safety supervision standards, the company places equal emphasis on regulation and service. Through the application system of the Wuhu Low-Altitude Flight Service Center, compliant enterprises are managed under a "whitelist" mechanism, streamlining the approval process for airspace usage. This approach aims to create a high-quality low-altitude economic development ecosystem where flights are "operable, visible, and manageable."

Looking ahead, Wuhu's low-altitude intelligent connectivity system will focus on the principles of "service first, regulation as empowerment." It will continue to drive iterative upgrades to the system, expand diverse application scenarios, and refine the industrial ecosystem. At the same time, it will strengthen data interoperability with national and provincial platforms, and further consolidate its pioneering and leading position in the innovative development of the national low-altitude economy. These efforts aim to provide stronger support and guarantees for the high-quality development of the low-altitude economy.

Source: Anhui Daily