Technical & General Meeting Köln, 16-18 March 2018 Impact of EU regulations on model flying & drones & an introduction to the EMFU Dave Phipps EAS Technical Officer for UA & President EMFU
1 EAS Conference 2018 Topics I would like to address today: An update on EASA RMT.0230 Regulations for Unmanned Aircraft An update on developments with U-Space An introduction to the European Model Flying Union (EMFU)
2 Background to RMT 0230 Driven by a political desire to establish a regulatory framework to enable the EU to exploit the economic benefits of unmanned aircraft; Safely Quickly Cheaply Also a requirement to regulate the proliferation of unlawful drone flights Model flyers involved in the process from the outset through EAS/FAI & EMFU Collectively we have contributed to gaining greater recognition for model flyers
3 RMT 0230 - Expert Group Only considered Open and Specific Category Operations (Principally VLOS and below 120m unless subject to an authorisation) 10 days of meetings between November 2016 and November 2017 EMFU provided further input up to the 20 th December, 2017 Our collective input contributed to greatly improving the situation from what was proposed in the 2015 Prototype Rules. EG may be recalled selectively to work on relevant Standard Scenarios
4 The Basic Regulation 22 December 2017 Retains useful recognition for Model Flying (thanks Timo): (20c) Model aircraft are considered as unmanned aircraft within the meaning of this Regulation and are used primarily for leisure activities. The delegated and implementing acts adopted under this on the basis of Regulation and concerning unmanned aircraft should take into account that such model aircraft have so far had a good safety record, especially those operated by members of model aircraft associations or clubs which developed specific codes of conduct for such activities. In addition, when adopting those delegated and implementing acts, the Commission should take account of the need for a seamless transition from the different national systems to the new Union regulatory framework so that model aircraft can continue to operate as they do today, also by taking into account existing best practices in the Member States. It also removed the requirement for mandatory registration of individual unmanned aircraft (other than certified aircraft). Operator registration still required
5 EASA Technical Opinion & Draft Regulation Technical Opinion & Draft Regulation published 6 th February, 2018 AMC & GM Material published 16 th February, 2018 Three routes available for model flyers to operate: 1. Operation within the Open Category 2. Operation in dedicated zones/airspace (Article 11) 3. Operation in the Specific Category (Article 6)
6 Open Category - as proposed in Draft Regulations Model flying possible within A3 Subcategory (Class C4 & Privately Built) <25 Kg MTOM Height limited to 120m Evidence of competence (online training & test) Minimum age of 16 unless supervised No additional CE technical requirements (other than inclusion of consumer information and absence of automatic flight capability) Registration required for operator and aircraft E-identification and Geofencing Geo Awareness subject to operating zone Aircraft <250g could operate within A1 subject to minimal regulation
Open Category - as proposed in Draft Regulations 7
8 Designated Zones - as proposed in Draft Regulations Article 11 provides Member States with an option to designate specific zones for model flying to take place Member States may define airspace in which UAS operations are exempted from one or more of the open category requirements of this Regulation, and in which operators are not required to hold an authorisation or submit a declaration.
9 Specific Category - as proposed in Draft Regulation Article 6 makes provision for Model Flying Associations: For UAS operations conducted in the framework of model clubs or associations, the following apply: 1. the competent authority may issue an operational authorisation, in accordance with UAS.SPEC.040, to a model club or association without further demonstration of compliance, on the basis of the model club s or association s established procedures, organisational structure, and management system; 2. operational authorisations granted under this Article shall include the conditions and limitations of, as well as the deviations from, the requirements of the Annex (Part-UAS) to this Regulation; 3. this authorisation shall be limited to the territory of the Member State where the authorisation was issued.
10 Specific Category - as proposed in Draft Regulation EASA has retained responsibilities for model clubs and associations but they have been relaxed slightly: UAS.SPEC.055 Responsibilities of model clubs and associations Model clubs and associations that hold an operational authorisation defined in Article 6 of this Regulation shall: 1. make available to their registered members appropriate procedures to comply with the conditions and limitations defined in the operational authorisation issued by the competent authority; 2. assist UAS remote pilots, who are registered members of the club or association, in achieving the minimum competency required to operate the UAS safely in accordance with the procedures defined in paragraph 1; 3. take appropriate action when informed that a registered member does not comply with the conditions and limitations defined in the operational authorisation and, if necessary, inform the competent authority; 4. provide, upon request from the competent authority, the documentation required for oversight and monitoring purposes.
11 EASA Technical Opinion & Draft Regulation Registration Requirements The Technical Opinion does introduce a new requirement to carry a placard displaying the pilots registration information: a requirement has been added to equip UA with a fire-resistant placard displaying registration information. Deviations are possible for very small UA and for model aircraft This is further addressed in the AMC & GM document GM1 UAS.SPEC.060 Registration within model aircraft associations and clubs Model clubs and associations may fulfil the UAS registration requirement on behalf of their members, and provide the related data to the entity designated for that purpose by the Member State. The procedures of model clubs and associations should define acceptable methods for their members to display the identification information on the UA.
12 But what about Kites? Fall under the definition for Unmanned Aircraft Not mentioned anywhere in the Technical Opinion or Draft Regulations Basic Regulation only removes some kites from EASA s UA Regulations EASA UA Regulations do not provide a good fit for kite flying An activity which has perhaps been overlooked and under represented?
13 What next? EASA Committee feedback (closed 14 th March) EASA to work with stakeholders/expert Group on developing Standard Scenarios First Standard Scenario Workshop in June 2018 EASA will work to develop NPA for Certified Category for publication in 2019 Some Member States rushing to change regulations to align with EASA s proposals in advance of them coming into effect (as is New Zealand!) No significant changes expected to Draft Regulations Plenty of other regulatory battles to focus on, including protecting Air Sports in the rush to develop U-Space (which leads me neatly to the next topic)
14 What is U-Space Concept developed the High Level Drone Conference in Warsaw, November 2016 U-space is a set of new services relying on a high level of digitalisation and automation of functions and specific procedures designed to support safe, efficient and secure access to airspace for large numbers of drones. As such, Uspace is an enabling framework designed to facilitate any kind of routine mission, in all classes of airspace and all types of environment - even the most congested while addressing an appropriate interface with manned aviation and air traffic control / ATCI Manned and unmanned traffic will operate safely and in harmony, including in non-controlled airspace, especially rural environments thanks to established common rules ensuring fair access to airspace. The environment will be mainly cooperative with an enhanced informationsharing system to allow situation awareness at both strategic and tactical levels.
15 The CORUS Project (Concept of Operation for EuRopean UTM Systems) The CORUS project has a program covering the next year and a half. The project aims to develop a concept of operation (ConOps) for UTM (Unmanned Traffic Management) which the EU now refers to as U-space. A consortium largely driven by Eurocontrol and SESAR EMFU has registered a stakeholder interest as part of the CORUS U-Space Community Network
16 The CORUS Project (Concept of Operation for EuRopean UTM Systems) My recent communications indicate the direction of travel for model flying (and maybe other air sports): When negotiations begin on airspace use, will you be able to prioritise your needs? (Eurocontrol) If we were to devise a scheme of pre-coordinated areas for model aircraft flying, what should it allow, what is important, what should the parameters be, particularly in terms of how long the processes should take? (Eurocontrol) A key assumption is that Airspace Users will meet 100% of required investment for equipage on non-drone aircraft Stakeholder workshop to take place at ENAC, Toulouse 26-28 June 2018
17 What does U-Space mean for us EU Drone Services Market estimated to be EUR 10 Billion by 2035 Airspace forecast to be 10x busier by 2035, much of this BVLOS unmanned flights Likely to require electronic conspicuity for all UA operating between 500ft and FL600 integrated into IFR Many UA Ops will be VLL We need a scalable approach to find somewhere to put these new flights (Eurocontrol) Airbus Zephyr
18 Science Fiction is becoming Science Fact Huge investment in UA & UTM within Aerospace industry Half of the NATO military aircraft fleet is already unmanned Capability already exists for pilotless Commercial Air Transport EC making Eur 10 Million available for UA/UTM Technology Demonstrations to help expedite regulatory development Some of the Airbus UA projects
19 Science Fiction is becoming Science Fact U-Space UTM at VLL will be highly automated potentially utilising a combination of the Internet of Things, the 5G communications network and Artificial Intelligence. I would like to give you my own demonstration of A.I. with help from HAL H.A.L. 9000
20 Science Fiction is becoming Science Fact U-Space UTM at VLL will be highly automated potentially utilising a combination of the Internet of Things, the 5G communications network and Artificial Intelligence. I would like to give you my own demonstration of A.I. with help from HAL H.A.L. 9000
21 Science Fiction is becoming Science Fact U-Space UTM at VLL will be highly automated potentially utilising a combination of the Internet of Things, the 5G communications network and Artificial Intelligence. I would like to give you my own demonstration of A.I. with help from HAL H.A.L. 9000
22 What next? We should all be alert to the challenges posed to our respective activities by the rush to introduce U-Space How does the economic benefit of Air Sports compare with the forecast economic benefit of UA? Will politicians and regulators follow the money with their priorities? Technology is now developing much faster than regulation. Are Air Sports stuck in the past? EMFU will endeavour to provide the best possible representation for Model Flyers (which leads me neatly to the next topic)
23 REPRESENTING MODELFLYERS IN EUROPE Proposed initially as a joint venture between DAeC, AeCS, BMFA and ÖAeC to co-ordinate model flyers representation to EASA and other agencies Initial exploratory meeting held at Friedrichshafen in October 2016 Further meeting to discuss constitution and membership of EAS held in Vienna in February 2017 Meeting to formally constitute the EMFU held in Wesel in May 2017 Workshop held in Cologne in June 2017 with EASA RMT.0230 Rulemaking Team Currently represents 17 Model Flying Associations and 125K model flyers with interest from further potential members I would like to provide you with a [very] small taster of model flying:
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25 REPRESENTING MODELFLYERS IN EUROPE We look forward to continuing our collaboration as a new member of Europe Air Sports Thanks for listening! Any questions?