Murzilli Consulting’s regulatory newsletter for the latest in UAS, eVTOL & AAM/IAM updates.
AESA published the news that the Spanish Council of Ministers approved a Royal Decree to update drone regulations and promote industry operators and manufacturers in Spain. The new regulatory framework will become effective 20 days after it is published in the Spanish Official State Bulletin (BOE).
This new regulation will help to implement European regulations and contribute to improving the IAM industry. It will include training for authorised operations, insurance exemptions, and reducing the minimum age for remote pilots in the open category. It will also introduce new zoning and changes in non–EASA civil UAS operations and new provisions for implementing U-space in Spain.
SORA 2.5 is now available for download on the JARUS webpage. The guidelines have significant adaptations to SORA 2.0 including improvements to wording and document organisation, adjustments of exaggerations and specific use case inaccuracies within the main body and annexes B, E and I.
The latest release also includes amendments to the following Annexes:
🔸Annex A: Guidelines on collecting and presenting system and operation information for a specific UAS operation
🔸Annex B: Integrity and assurance levels for the mitigations used to reduce the intrinsic Ground Risk Class
🔸Annex E: Integrity and Assurance Levels for the Operational Safety Objectives (OSO)
🔸Annex F: Theoretical Basis for Ground Risk Classification and Mitigation
🔸Annex H: UAS Safety Services Considerations
🔸Annex I: Glossary of Terms
🔸Cyber Safety Extension: Supplement for Annexes B & E
The FAA has released an Advisory Circular, AC 21.17-4, Type Certification - Powered-lift. The aim is to provide guidance for the type, production and airworthiness certification of powered-lift.
In an issued statement, the FAA acknowledged, in collaboration with EASA, the significance of this milestone on the path to certifying eVTOL aircraft and aligning rulemaking and policy initiatives between the United States and the European Union.
For comments include the subject line “Type Certification – Powered-lift” and the docket number FAA 2024-1586 and submit to the FAA until August 12, 2024.
The FAA and EASA have pledged to work collaboratively in order to overcome the challenges of the fast-moving evolution of the aviation industry.
The FAA and EASA pledge to:
🔸Prioritise enhancing cooperative efforts at all working levels between their organisations
🔸Strengthen the focus and information exchange on safety oversight to promote a strong safety culture
🔸Optimise their resources and fully leverage the US-EU Aviation Safety Agreement, encouraging their technical experts to work together and rely on one another to reduce duplication of effort, taking a risk-based approach
🔸Deepen proactive collaboration on certification activities and on operational frameworks for new and innovative technologies
🔸Expand and target cooperation on rulemaking efforts earlier in the development process
🔸Promote aviation sustainability, particularly activities on sustainable aviation fuel development and deployment
🔸Partner to ensure that the goals of the Bilateral Enhancement Roadmap on certification activities are realised
🔸Reinforce cooperation on the analysis and mitigation of systemic safety risks as well as innovation and future aviation technologies
🔸Facilitate exchange and information sharing on topical areas and emerging risks facing aviation safety, such as cybersecurity, conflict zones, and global positioning system / global navigation satellite system (GPS/GNSS) interference
EASA’s Research Agenda, proposed by EASA’s experts and members of the Member States’ Advisory Body Research Group, covers topics such as aviation safety, security, environment, health, and innovation.
The association aims to support the aviation authorities’ core activities which include rulemaking, certification, approval and oversight while preparing them for future challenges, covering the main agendas which are:
🔸Aviation authorities’ needs
🔸Aviation topics
Section 2.12 of the document covers Drone and BVLOS operations, with expected deliverables such as:
🔸Defining mobile communication requirements for e-conspicuity
🔸Defining the necessary avoidance procedures and minimum separation distances between drones and crewed aircraft or other drones
The EASA Research Agenda is updated annually and is based on the latest data on EASA and National Aviation Authority operations, safety and emerging risks.
The Spanish CAA (AESA) has published PDRA S01 (F), an adapted pre-defined risk assessment (PDRA) for aerial fumigation and dispersion of agricultural/forestry products.
This is relevant to phytosanitary operations in the specific category in an operational scenario with the following main characteristics:
🔸UA of up to 3 m maximum characteristic dimension
🔸VLOS (visual line of sight operation) from the pilot at a maximum distance of 500 m
🔸Over a controlled land area in sparsely populated areas
🔸Below 30 m above ground level (AGL), except when close to obstacles
🔸In controlled or uncontrolled airspace, whenever there is a low probability of encountering crewed aircraft
With the PDRA-S01 (F), an operator will not need to provide an additional risk assessment according to Article 11 of Regulation (EU) 2019/947.
AESA has also provided templates for the generic part of the Operations Manual and the Annex to the ConOps of the PDRA-S01 (F) which must be filled out by the operator. These documents do not need to be submitted with the authorisation request, but they must be completed and readily available to the authority on the date of the submission of the authorisation.
The Italian Civil Aviation Authority (Enac) has published their nationwide regulation governing flight operations with VCAs (Vertical Takeoff and Landing Capable Aircraft) and introduced requirements for the construction and operation of vertiports.
The regulation includes:
🔸Requirements for VCA navigation with a pilot on board in the national airspace
🔸Establishment of flight corridor reservations, in particular over urban areas
🔸 Defined guidelines for the construction and operation of vertiports
The new regulation, Royal Decree 517/2024, will allow uncoordinated flights outside the geographical areas where operational safety must meet certain conditions as well as non-compulsory use of radio, flight plan filing and other systems.
EASA has published their final report and executive summary of the Machine Learning Application Approval (MLEAP) project.
The project identified a set of methods and tools to address the following 3 topics:
🔸Machine learning model generalisation
🔸Data completeness and representativeness
🔸Algorithm and model robustness
The final report features the project’s methodology and the aviation use cases that were evaluated during the research and is available on EASA’s webpage as a PDF.
EASA’s MLEAP Final dissemination event will be held in Cologne on July 3, 2024.
The document proposes the following considerations for rulemaking on VTOL-capable aircraft:
🔸New aircraft category “vertical take-off and landing aircraft” named as VCA category
🔸Only type ratings will be associated with each VCA-approved project
🔸The VCA pilot must perform an approved VCA air operation within 45 days
🔸VCA pilot license issuance requirements (minimum age, training, experience, etc.)
🔸VCA type rating issuance, a REGULATORY PROPOSAL 43 VCA type rating will be issued after several assessments
🔸VCA instructor pilot authorisation issued after the specific requirements are met
🔸VCA examiner pilot authorisation issued after specific requirements are proven
CASA has recently published their guide to vertiport design with the intention of providing support to organisations that are in the early stages of planning and designing vertiports for vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) capable aircraft.
The guide provides explanations and examples to complement CASA’s advisory circular AC 139.V-01 which is largely based on experience with helicopter operations. At the time of publication, the document notes that no VCA have been certified and there is no certainty that future VCA operations will match those of current certified helicopters.
The document also notes that the following operations are not covered in the guide:
🔸Flights in instrument flight conditions
🔸Flights operating under digital flight rules
🔸Flights operating with any form of autonomy
🔸Vertiport operations, maintenance, serviceability, emergency response and safety and risk management systems (currently still in development)
Did we miss any news about drone regulations? Write to us, and we’ll add it to next month’s edition!
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See you in the skies and beyond,
Team Murzilli
The activities developed by M&K UAS & SPACE SPAIN SL according to the requirements expressed in the International ISO 9001: 2015 standard are:
Consultancy and training services on Uncrewed Aerial Systems (Drones) and Flight Procedure Design (FPD).
The main points of action issued by the management in the quality policy statement issued by the management are:
Our quality commitment to all the interested parties (customer, suppliers, stakeholders, employees, competence and public administration) leads us to provide reliable and effective products and services. These product and services are provided worldwide in compliance with the regulatory requirements and in full alignment with our company values.
The Quality culture and mindset is promoted through proper training to each member of M&K UAS & SAPCE SPAIN SL so that everybody has full awareness of the quality importance.
Management makes this policy accessible and available to its customers, its employees, suppliers and the general public
The Policy is kept up-to-date through periodic reviews, coinciding with the management review of the system, in order to take into account changes in environmental conditions and the information received. In this sense, the management provides and will provide all the human, technical and economic resources needed to achieve the objectives and targets established scheduled and periodically.
07/01/2025. Ed. 1.
Chief Executive Office
