LCQ21: Progress of promoting development of low-altitude economy
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Question:
The National 15th Five-Year Plan puts forward the need to nurture and foster emerging industries and industries of the future such as the low-altitude economy (LAE). There are views suggesting that Hong Kong should proactively dovetail with our country's strategy by promoting LAE development and regarding it as an important segment in unlocking new production factors for its economy. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) among the first batch of the LAE "Regulatory Sandbox" pilot projects, of the number of projects that have been successfully completed, the application scenarios that have been implemented and are ready for application for operation, and the relevant operational details; as it is learnt that over 100 applications in total have been received under the second phase entitled "Regulatory Sandbox X", of the respective numbers of project applications that have been received for the five core application scenarios (i.e. emergency and rescue, drone delivery, maintenance and inspection, surveillance and low-altitude infrastructure), and the estimated time for completing vetting and approval and commencing testing;
(2) whether it will expeditiously create a post of "Commissioner for Low-altitude Economy Development" dedicated to such tasks as coordinating LAE development in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and facilitating interdepartmental collaboration; whether it will study the establishment of a "Hong Kong Low-altitude Authority" as a dedicated statutory authority in charge of core matters on all fronts such as airspace management, flight regulation, vetting and approval of qualifications, industry facilitation, and international co-operation;
(3) as an unmanned aircraft traffic management (UTM) system and a multiple applications/users shared-platform (shared platform) are the most important and core infrastructure for LAE development, of the specific plans drawn up by the Government for establishing a local UTM system and shared platform and the relevant timetable;
(4) as the 2024 Policy Address states that the authorities will explore with the Mainland authorities the joint establishment of low-altitude cross-boundary air routes, immigration and customs clearance arrangements, supporting infrastructure, etc, of the latest progress, details and timetable of the relevant work;
(5) whether it has any plans to amend the Small Unmanned Aircraft Order (Cap. 448G), the Air Navigation (Hong Kong) Order 1995 (Cap. 448C) and the Civil Aviation Ordinance (Cap. 448), so as to add dedicated chapters or parts on heavy unmanned aircraft (HUA), electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, intelligent review, cross-boundary flights, mandatory safety equipment, etc, and to extend the regulatory scope from unmanned aircraft below 150 kilograms to HUA weighing 5 700 kg or above; whether it will establish the legal status of intelligent review of applications for "artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted flight operations" and confer legal power on AI to conduct automatic approval of applications for "low-risk regular flight routes"; if so, of the details and timetable; if not, the reasons for that; and
(6) as it is learnt that the Lands Department is studying the progressive establishment of unmanned aircraft airports at various locations in the New Territories to dovetail with automatic air route management, automatic take-off and landing, instant data transmission and AI analytical systems in the future and in turn promote the development of a low-altitude infrastructure network in Hong Kong, of the progress and details of the relevant work?
Reply:
President,
Low-altitude economy (LAE) is one of our nation's strategic emerging pillar industries. The National 15th Five-Year Plan clearly proposes promoting the healthy and orderly development of LAE. In order to proactively align with the national development strategy, the Chief Executive announced in the 2024 Policy Address and the 2025 Policy Address a series of initiatives to foster the development of LAE in Hong Kong, including the setting up of the Working Group on Developing LAE (Working Group) headed by the Deputy Financial Secretary to lead relevant bureaux and departments (B/Ds) in proactively taking forward related tasks. The Government's objective is to drive institutional innovation and technological breakthroughs as dual engines to build an internationally competitive LAE ecosystem, positioning Hong Kong as the Asia-Pacific hub for innovative low-altitude applications.
In consultation with the Lands Department (LandsD), the reply to the Member's question is as follows:
(1) The Government announced 38 LAE "Regulatory Sandbox" projects in March 2025. To date, 34 projects have commenced, and the remaining four projects will be taken forward through other mechanisms (including "Regulatory Sandbox X" and the Civil Aviation Department (CAD)'s Small Unmanned Aircraft (SUA) Advanced Training Organisation Scheme). Among them, more than 20 projects have been regularised and scaled (such as the use of unmanned aircraft for facade cleaning, infrastructure inspection, facilities surveillance, environmental monitoring, drone show, aerial photography, materials lifting, and low-altitude infrastructure). The CAD has promulgated SUA Advisory Circulars (ACs) for relevant application scenarios to provide related guidance. Having regard to the data, knowledge, and experience accumulated from the "Regulatory Sandbox" projects, the CAD has promulgated a series of new guidance for SUA, such as AC-014 on guidance for application of Category C SUA, AC-015 on guidance for use of unmanned aircraft for facade cleaning operations, and AC-016 on guidance for SUA operations using unmanned aircraft docking stations.
Building on the successful experience of the "Regulatory Sandbox", the Government announced the launch of the advanced LAE "Regulatory Sandbox X" in November 2025, with a view to further expanding to test five application scenarios that are more technically complex, namely unmanned aircraft system traffic management (UTM) system demonstrations, unconventional aircraft (UCA), cross-boundary applications, multiple applications/users shared-platform (shared-platform), and others. Applications under the "Regulatory Sandbox X" closed in February this year. The sector's response to "Regulatory Sandbox X" has been enthusiastic and more than 100 applications were received. A total of 15 pilot projects under the UTM system demonstrations module and a first batch of four pilot projects under the UCA module have been selected by the Working Group for implementation in phases. The relevant pilot projects have started to be progressively implemented since the first half of this year. The Working Group is evaluating the other applications and will announce the results in due course.
(2) The Working Group has all along been committed to formulating development strategies and inter-departmental action plans for the development of LAE, co-ordinating the implementation of the tasks pertaining to LAE development, namely airspace management, aviation safety, infrastructural planning, standards setting, Mainland (particularly the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA)) and international collaboration, etc by the relevant B/Ds in accordance with their respective purviews. The Government will keep in view the relevant governance structure and manpower situation from time to time, and, if necessary, seek the necessary manpower and financial resources in accordance with the established resource allocation mechanism when appropriate.
(3) A robust low-altitude infrastructure is essential to the safe and efficient operation of low-altitude flying activities, in particular under the challenging low-altitude operating environment in Hong Kong with complex terrains and high-rise buildings. The UTM system demonstrations module of the "Regulatory Sandbox X" is testing the functionalities of solutions offered by different service providers. At the same time, with reference to the experience accumulated by the "Regulatory Sandbox" projects as well as best practices of Mainland and overseas jurisdictions, the CAD has commenced a technical study on formulating the conceptual model and technical requirements for a Smart Low-altitude Traffic Management System (SLATMS). Subject to the progress of the aforementioned technical study and the trials of pilot projects under the "Regulatory Sandbox X", the CAD will take forward the implementation of the SLATMS, thereby providing highly digitalised and automated management to ensure the safe and efficient operation of low-altitude flying activities.
As regards the shared-platform, the Government will similarly test the functionalities of solutions offered by different platform providers through the shared-platform module of the "Regulatory Sandbox X", while encouraging different Government departments currently leveraging drones for different operational purposes to actively participate in the trials and validate the potential synergy offered by shared-platforms. Subject to the trials of the "Regulatory Sandbox X" pilot projects, the Government will consider the way forward of the shared-platform when appropriate.
(4) With its strong industrial foundation and rich application scenarios, the GBA has substantial market demand for cross-boundary logistics of commercial documents, high-end commerce and emergency supplies, thus possessing unique advantages for developing cross-boundary LAE logistics applications. The Government is proactively working with the relevant Mainland authorities to foster trial flights of cross-boundary low-altitude logistics projects, including the planning of cross-boundary air route networks, customs clearance arrangements and infrastructure requirements, etc. The objective is to commence trial flights under the framework of the cross-boundary applications module of the "Regulatory Sandbox X" as soon as practicable, with a view to laying the foundation for establishing an LAE corridor in the GBA.
(5) The Government continues to review and improve civil aviation legislation and regulatory framework to lay the foundation for the long-term standardised development of LAE. Last year, the Government expanded the Small Unmanned Aircraft Order (Cap. 448G) to cover Category C SUA weighing over 25 kilograms to 150 kg, and introduced new provisions in the Air Navigation (Hong Kong) Order 1995 (Cap. 448C) to facilitate trial operations of UCA (such as unmanned aircraft weighing more than 150 kg, electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft and UCA designed for passenger-carrying) under specified conditions.
The Government has commenced studying the development of a dedicated legislation for UCA, with a view to establishing a comprehensive regulatory regime that is flexible and forward looking to keep pace with technological advancements. As there are no unified international standards and recommended practices for these emerging technologies at present, the Government will make reference to the prevailing regulatory regime for SUA and the latest regulatory developments in the Mainland and other jurisdictions to develop the relevant regulatory framework. The Legislative Council will be consulted on the proposed legislative framework when appropriate.
Meanwhile, the Government has been closely monitoring the technical development and overall applications of artificial intelligence (AI). As the regulator of civil aviation matters, the CAD proactively provides facilitation measures for the industry in addition to its principal duty of safeguarding aviation safety. With regard to the application of AI on approval of unmanned aircraft operation applications, the CAD will keep in view closely the related development and, on the premise of not compromising aviation and public safety, maintain an open attitude in making relevant considerations to help the industry enhance operational efficiency. To cater for the operational needs of different types of unmanned aircraft, the CAD will continue to explore different approaches to help the industry improve operational efficiency, such as issuing longer-term permissions for routine operations.
(6) Through a "Regulatory Sandbox" project, the LandsD has set up unmanned aircraft docking stations at different locations to support the Department's work on map updating, emergency survey, terrain change detection and land administration. As the first phase of the project, two unmanned aircraft docking stations were established in Shap Sze Heung, Sai Kung North, and Lam Tei, Hung Shui Kiu, and service testing has begun.
In addition, the LandsD is also assisting the Working Group in integrating geospatial data related to LAE and providing functions such as flight path planning, thereby facilitating data sharing among LAE participants.
Ends/Wednesday, June 24, 2026
Issued at HKT 11:52
Issued at HKT 11:52
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