Universität zu Köln

Andritsos, Konstantinos (2025). Towards the 3rd dimension of urban transport: Is the upcoming model of advanced urban mobility just another aircraft network? PhD thesis, Universität zu Köln.

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Abstract

European cities are increasingly facing challenges such as traffic congestion, environmental pressures, limited spatial resources, and rising demands for mobility. Urban Air Mobility (UAM), facilitated by electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft (eVTOL) and other unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), is emerging as a potential solution to these issues by adding a third dimension to urban transport. While technological advancements in this area are progressing rapidly, the existing legal framework remains fragmented and inadequately adapted to the unique conditions of low-altitude, on-demand air operations over EU cities. This dissertation explores the legal implications of integrating UAM into urban environments across Europe. It examines how UAM fits within current mobility concepts, evaluates its operational interactions with the European Union and international aviation law, and assesses whether existing regulations are sufficient for large-scale deployment. Key topics discussed include aviation safety and certification, airspace access and the related questions of municipal or regional airspace sovereignty, the legal status of vertiports, and liability frameworks under the Montreal and Rome Conventions, as well as EU passenger regulations. The influence of important institutions, such as the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), EUROCONTROL, and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), is analysed in relation to shaping future regulatory paths. Through doctrinal legal analysis and case studies of Hamburg and Astypalaia, this dissertation identifies significant gaps in the current regulatory system. It argues that existing frameworks only partially address UAM and that a coherent, multifaceted approach is necessary to ensure safety, legal certainty, and public acceptance.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD thesis)
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID ORCID Put Code Andritsos, Konstantinos konstantinos.andritsos@protonmail.com UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED
URN:	urn:nbn:de:hbz:38-793156
Date:	2025
Language:	English
Faculty:	Faculty of Law
Divisions:	Faculty of Law > Öffentliches Recht > Professur für Luft- und Weltraumrecht
Subjects:	Law Commerce, communications, transport
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Keywords Language Air Law English electrical Vertical Take-off and Landing aircraft English Urban Air Mobility English U-space English Unmanned Aircraft Systems English EASA English
Date of oral exam:	28 October 2025
Referee:	Name Academic Title Hobe, Stephan Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Dr. h.c. Kempen, Bernhard Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c.
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	http://kups.ub.uni-koeln.de/id/eprint/79315