As you may already be aware, v2.0 of the BSI Flex 1903 Vocabulary standard is now publicly accessible. We'd like to thank everyone involved with the development so far, and for providing your valuable feedback. Read more about the second version here. We encourage you to explore the interactive version here and share it with your networks. By spreading the word, you’re helping to promote a standardized approach that benefits the entire future flight industry. Any questions or comments, please do share in this thread.

After a final review by the Advisory Group and further editing so that it meets BSI Drafting rules, we will be starting the publication process shortly. This will involve the standard being typeset and checked internally to make sure it means BSI guidelines, this can happen several times before it is finalized. Once this has been done, the standard will then be released. The new version will be available on the Community to view, as well as the BSI website. We are aiming to publish in May.

The public consultation period for the BSI Flex 1903 - Vocabulary - Version one is coming to a close on October 13th, so please do share any further feedback, comments, additional terms, or suggestions: https://standardsdevelopment.bsigroup.com/projects/9023-09109#/section Your input, whether proposing new terms or refining existing ones, will help clarify the language of the Future Flight space. P.S. you can view the vocabulary within the community platform here.

As you may already be aware, the BSI Flex 1903 v1.0 2023-08 Future Flight Systems – Vocabulary is available for free download and comment. The standard creates a lexicon of terms and acronyms used in future flight systems and the ecosystem within which they operate, so that everyone involved has a common understanding and vocabulary to use. As our community members, we also welcome general feedback including what terms could be considered for future versions. Please feel free to share these in the post below.

We are pleased to announce that BSI Flex 1903 V1.0:2023:08 - Future Flight Systems - Vocabulary has now been released and is now out for its 4-week public consultation - thank you to our community members and other key stakeholders who have contributed to the V1. To review and comment on the standard, please click here. It is free to register online, and once you have registered please log in. The closing date for this public consultation is 30 September 2023. Please note that only comments submitted electronically through the online Standards Development Portal (SDP) by the date given above will be accepted. Please disseminate this information widely within your organization and to other relevant stakeholders in your network, and invite them to join this community to keep up to date with future key updates. Where possible, comments should be submitted by one person from your organization to ensure that no conflicting comments are submitted by members of the same organization and to avoid repetition. Please note, you can also view the standard within the community space here. We thank you in advance for your time and help with this project. Your input is highly valued.

Moving onto the public consultation phase is an important milestone for the development of this standard and it is due in no small part to the fantastic support and collaboration of the Advisory Group. Having input from a range of experts across the future flight ecosystem has been essential and I can’t thank the contributors from the AG enough. What we have prepared includes: terms which are entirely new (to help define a specific issue or concept); terms that are already in common use (but which don't yet have consensus on a clear definition); and terms that are based on existing definitions (which have been included where needed to make the Vocabulary more complete and self-contained). I've no doubt there will be plenty of additional terms to add in the future, especially in such a fast-paced industry, hopefully this initial version will provide a good starting point. I'd also like to reiterate Sasha's comments and invitation for feedback during the public consultation phase, at the end of the day the point of developing this Vocabulary is to help the future flight industry move forward by standardising the language we use - achieving consensus is the key to making that happen.

As you may have already seen, we are pleased to announce an exclusive community preview of the first standard within the Future Flight Standards Programme – the BSI Flex 1903 v1:2023-08 - Future Flight Systems - Vocabulary. This standard marks a significant milestone in our collaborative efforts to enhance safety, innovation, commercialization, and standardization for Future Flight. Thank you to all who have been involved in the development of version 1 of the standard, with a special thanks to our Advisory Group and our Technical Author, @Anthony Venetz . You can find the standard preview here. Get ready for the official public consultation phase Stay tuned for the upcoming official public consultation phase in September. During this phase, you will have the opportunity to contribute your thoughts, feedback, and suggestions on version 1 and the individual terms and definitions to help shape the evolution of BSI Flex 1903 and subsequent iterations. For now, we invite you to explore the BSI Flex 1903 standard.

Hi @Aleks Kowalski and @Phil Vigor Just to circle back to this on the BSI Philosophy we always strive to ensure all standards are inclusive of all potential users of the standard as well as all those potentially affected (directly or indirectly) by the use of the standard and that would include ensuring language is inclusive. There is an ISO/IEC Joint Advisory Group (of which we are a member) which is currently developing a guide on inclusive language which will have a list of terms which should no longer be used, why and suggested alternatives - so I think taking this step for us looking to lead by example rather than going it alone. As Anthony has already mentioned working with uncrewed on this. Also to highlght we are planning to have the Vocabulary document ready for release in early September for public consulation which will be a great opportunity to share any further thoughts and comments.

Hi Alex, speaking from the perspective of the Vocabulary FLEX which is currently under development, the working terminology is uncrewed, so it sounds like we are aligned on this.

The FFIG are using uncrewed and advanced air mobility as the 2 key phrases, so it makes sense that they are the ones the BSI looks to ape.

Good question @Aleks Kowalski, thanks for posting it. I've asked the good folks at BSI's knowledge centre for the wider view on how vocabulary may or may not prioritize accessibility and inclusion in standards, and will report back in due course. It'd be interesting to hear more views on how best to align (if at all) from others in the community as well.

What about the use of unmanned, uncrewed etc EASA and ICAO still use the former and have not indicated any plans yet to change this. What is the wider BSI philosophy around alignment versus going it alone? KR Aleks

Hi @Phil Vigor as you mention, it feels like these definitions need to be transport sector, if not industry agnostic rather than defined in a Future Flight vocabulary. Coventry University is running a large programme of work to improve transport for people with disabilities - https://www.coventry.ac.uk/news/2023/awarded-20-million-to-improve-transport-for-people-with-disabilities/#:~:text=Coventry University awarded £20 million to improve transport for people with disabilities,-The £20&text=Coventry University has been tasked,for accessible and inclusive transport. I think this would be a good discussion to have with the team at Coventry. I have a couple of contacts there if you would like me to introduce you?

Hi @Phil Vigor, many thanks for your question - I'm highlighting this to @Anthony Venetz and @Chris Gee who are closely involved with the development of the BSI Flex Vocabulary, alongside a welcome of thoughts from the wider community.

As part of the HEART Phase 3 study Mott MacDonald are working closely with Edinburgh Napier University to ensure that accessibility and inclusivity are at the heart of the design (no pun intended). We have looked to find a comprehensive definition of this but have found inconsistencies with how these terms and the term 'disabled' are defined by various organisations and industry bodies, including IATA, ICAO and CAA. Is there the opportunity for this group to consider a 'universal' definition of these terms at least for use in our study, but ideally would be industry agnostic? Happy to hear the thoughts and views of others.

Thank you to all who have already shared their feedback. We'd like to invite any final input from the community by at this stage for further potential terms to include in the first iteration of the vocabulary. This will support the creation of an initial broad set of definitions across Future Flight and a focus on UAS. Specifically, we're inviting contributions on: Future Flight topics and terms not related to UAS that create confusion Additional key terms that should be captured in the first iteration of the vocabulary relating to UAS You can see the current proposed scope here. Please feel free to share any thoughts, questions, or feedback below. Please note, this discussion will close on Tuesday 2nd of May at 08.00.

Hi all, a quick reminder note that we are closing the Miro board COB today following the scoping workshop last week. Please do add any further comments today. If you have any further questions or thoughts, please get in touch, or respond on this thread. Many thanks Sasha

Hi Sasha, thanks for setting up this forum for the Future Flight Vocabulary project. As the Technical Author for the Vocabulary, I'm looking froward to working with members on the development of the standard and I hope that we can make good use this invaluable tool to communicate and record ideas as the standard develops.

Thank you to all who attended the scoping workshop for the Vocabulary Flex, the first standard to be developed by the BSI Future Flight Standards Programme. We successfully agreed the scope; this will be formally approved next week. We are keen to ensure that we capture topics and terms across the breadth of Future Flight so these can be considered for the first iteration of the vocabulary. The Miro board will be kept open until COB Wednesday 5th April to allow further input on the topics and terms and we are particularly keen to capture details for the AAM and Regional categories. A reminder of Miro board details has been sent via email to all who were involved in the scoping workshop via email on the 29th of March.

Hi all, A warm welcome to this space, dedicated to updates, discussions, and news relating to the development of the first BSI Flex as part of this Future Flight program. Please join the space to keep updated on the development of the standard, browse the tabs at the top to view relevant files, key dates, and events in relation to the development of the standard, and scope to carry on, or start new discussions in relation to the Flex Vocabulary. If you have any questions, please do send me a direct message, by heading into your community inbox.