This South Korean company has built a 5G search and rescue airship
![A North Korean village is seen near the demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating North Korea and South Korea, in this picture taken from an observation post in South Korea, just south of the DMZ in Paju, north of Seoul April 7, 2013. China deplored rising tension on the Korean peninsula on Sunday but said its embassy was operating normally in the North Korean capital and it asked authorities there to ensure its diplomats and other citizens were kept safe. REUTERS/Lee Jae-Won (SOUTH KOREA - Tags: MILITARY POLITICS)](https://assets.weforum.org/article/image/large_TVMoEYvO-KfBCgETByMp8mZsS8MuMD3dlqmH_FmYNUE.jpg)
5G will be a huge step-up for a host of technologies. Image: REUTERS/Lee Jae-Won
![A hand holding a looking glass by a lake](/uplink.jpg)
Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale
Stay up to date:
Republic of Korea
It’s surprising more people aren’t excited about 5G given its potential. Although more than half of global consumers expect it to deliver faster mobile networks, only a quarter think the next generation cellular network technology will lead to innovative new services.
So, a project in South Korea that aims to use a 5G-connected airship to help transform search and rescue missions may go some way to convince doubters that the technology could change the world.
Roving robots
The Skyship project, created by South Korean telecom giant KT Corp, brings science fiction to life. Although autonomous drones have already been developed for search and rescue work, this is the first project to use a flying mothership to deploy and control them.
The unmanned 5G-controlled Skyship can carry up to eight drones that use high-definition cameras and thermal imaging to search for signs of life in disaster zones. A prototype is currently in the testing phase, but the Skyship has yet to be used in a real-life rescue.
Skyship's drones can be flown up to 100 kilometres away from a control centre, 20 times further than conventional models. The latest version of the airship can stay in the air for up to 11 hours.
Once survivors have been located, the airship can deploy robots to seek out any injured people. In addition to delivering first aid, the robots can create a live link between casualties and emergency medics through on-board cameras.
Protecting rescue teams
Skyship can also act as an airborne control centre for human rescuers. Throughout a given operation, it can create a 360-degree live security zone to protect rescue teams from intruders who may pose a threat.
The project was demonstrated at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain earlier this year. Delegates witnessed the Skyship being flown over the South Korean city of Busan from a virtual cockpit at the event.
KT Corp says it plans to put the airship into commercial production next year.
Don't miss any update on this topic
Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.
License and Republishing
World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.
The Agenda Weekly
A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda
You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails. For more details, review our privacy policy.
More on Emerging TechnologiesSee all
Henry Ajder
July 19, 2024
Sebastian Buckup
July 18, 2024
Nii Simmonds and Ayodele Okeowo
July 17, 2024
Jerome Desbonnet and Oded Vanunu
July 16, 2024
Tariq Malik and Prerna Saxena
July 12, 2024
Stefanie Ólives
July 12, 2024