Speakers
Christina Suomi
Project Director, Helsinki U-space project 2024-2026, Strategic Spatial Planning, Helsinki Urban Environment Division, City of Helsinki
Project Director, Helsinki U-space project 2024-2026, Strategic Spatial Planning, Head of the Urban Planning unit on leave. Helsinki Urban Environment Division, City of Helsinki, Finland. Education: Architect M.Sc, Skills: Expertise on aviation. Activities: former METREX mc member, METREX vice president in Europe and member of mc in Helsinki 3d+ city model -development
I’m responsible for City of Helsinki’s very low level (VLL) airspace 3d U-space digital twin prototype preparing the city for the disruptive and historical change of aviation bringing it above the urban areas in scale. Our VLL airspace aspirations in Helsinki are drafted directly into a digital twin (DT) for being fast, safe, cheap, effective, and smart. Now that the DT is in place, we are preparing to tackle the attribute data in ED-318 format as well as challenges of the legislation, public acceptance, and societal effects all executed in large collaboration and ecosystem for the benefit of the welfare society and the city. City of Helsinki sits on the driver’s seat to steer the transition in its air space domain despite the fact the cities do not own the airspace.
We have the opinion, that the cities have a role and responsibility to safeguard citizens and environment and therefore responsibility to ensure that this change is to happen in a managed and coordinated manner. This all can be done in balance as the cities do have an important role and skills of being enablers. Helsinki U-space project 2024-2026, which I’ve led since 1st March 2024- with my talented co-pilots named city’s first aviation expert, Mr. Jukka Keski-Jaskari (ret.MIL, ATM Civ.Mil. fighter pilot) and Mr. Juha Niemelä (GIS specialist), are working under this umbrella.
