Murzilli Consulting’s regulatory newsletter for the latest in UAS, eVTOL and AAM/IAM updates.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has launched a new Art. 89 Survey aimed at understanding how socio-economic factors, such as employment and working conditions, affect the safety performance and wellbeing of aviation professionals in safety-critical roles.
Key points:
🔸 Targeted Participants: Pilots, cabin crew, operational control personnel (dispatchers, OCC staff, flight operations officers) across Europe
🔸 Focus Areas: How job security, pay, scheduling, stress and working conditions may impact operational safety
🔸 Objective: To identify risks, strengthen safety culture and inform evidence-based policymaking across the EU aviation ecosystem
🔸 Confidentiality: Responses are confidential, processed solely for research under GDPR and anonymised for analysis
🔸 Time Commitment: The survey takes approx. 30 minutes and must be completed in one session
Part of the European Commission’s Drone Strategy 2.0 (Flagship Action 7), the IAM Hub continues to support harmonised, data-driven drone implementation across the EU.
The survey is open until 7 December 2025.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has launched a major consultation to define the regulatory framework for commercial Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) operations, aiming to enable passenger flights by end-2028. The proposals cover airworthiness, operations, pilot licensing and infrastructure requirements.
Key proposals include:
🔸 Aircraft Classification: VTOL aircraft would be classified as either Powered-Lift or Non-Conventional Helicopters
🔸 Pilot Licensing: Framework based on current licensing rules, with a possible Private Pilot Licence (PPL) route for non-commercial VTOL pilots
🔸 Operational Rules: New rules for commercial flights adapted from existing helicopter and fixed-wing regulations
🔸 Landing Sites and Aerodromes: Adaptations to infrastructure requirements, allowing use of unlicensed aerodromes with operator permission
The consultation promotes regulatory clarity while leveraging existing aviation systems to integrate VTOL safely and efficiently into UK airspace. It is open for public input until 29 January 2026.
EASA has also launched NPA 2025-07, its first regulatory proposal on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in aviation. This Notice of Proposed Amendment (NPA) provides technical guidance on AI trustworthiness in line with the EU AI Act (Regulation 2024/1689), marking a critical first step in regulating high-risk AI systems in aviation.
Key elements of the proposal include:
🔸 AI Assurance Framework: Defines foundational guidance on validating and certifying AI-based aviation systems
🔸 Human-AI Teaming: Introduces trust and human factors requirements for Level 1 AI (assistance) and Level 2 AI (human-AI collaboration)
🔸 Data-Driven AI Systems: Covers supervised/unsupervised machine learning, with future updates to address reinforcement learning and generative AI
🔸 Ethics & Safety: Embeds principles for ethical use, transparency and accountability in AI deployment
🔸 Flexible Regulatory Architecture: Designed to evolve with technological progress across various aviation domains
This NPA supports Rulemaking Task (RMT) 0742 and will be followed by a second proposal in 2026 to extend the framework to specific domains (e.g. ATM, aircraft systems, maintenance).
The consultation is now open for public comment until 10 February 2026.
Transport Canada has announced the phased implementation of updated drone regulations to unlock Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations and enable medium drone usage without requiring a Special Flight Operations Certificate (SFOC-RPAS).
Key regulatory changes include:
🔸 New Certification for Lower-Risk BVLOS: Pilots can operate in uncontrolled airspace using the new Level 1 Complex Operations certification and RPAS Operator Certificate (RPOC)
🔸 Expanded Privileges for Advanced Pilots: Starting 4 November 2025, advanced pilots can fly:
- Sheltered operations (close to structures)
- Extended Visual Line-of-Sight (EVLOS) with a trained Visual Observer
- Medium drones (25–150 kg) within VLOS, subject to technical declaration
🔸 Updated Requirements for Microdrones at Events: SFOC now required for use at advertised events (from 1 April 2025)
🔸 Drone Management Portal Enhancements: RPOC applications and exams available from 1 April 2025, allowing preparation ahead of full regulatory enforcement
🔸 New Technical Standards & Risk Requirements: For drones used in advanced or complex operations
🔸 Revised Fee Structure Introduced: Covers exams, certificates, declarations and various complexity levels of SFOC applications
These updates mark a major shift toward scalable commercial operations in Canadian airspace while streamlining oversight for lower-risk scenarios.
The UK CAA has also released the third edition of CAP3040, a policy concept designed to guide Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) operators conducting specific BVLOS operations in atypical air environments (AAEs). These are low-risk airspace volumes temporarily segregated from other airspace users, enabling operations outside standard rules under defined risk mitigations.
Key updates and focus areas include:
🔸 Policy Framework for AAE: Outlines how AAEs can be established through engagement with the CAA’s UAS Sector Team to safely accommodate UAS operations that exceed normal permissions
🔸 Operational Limitations: Specifies that AAEs must not be used for routine operations and are suited for test and development flights, emergency services or special infrastructure inspection missions
🔸 Integration of Risk-Based Approach: Encourages use of the Specific Operations Risk Assessment (SORA) methodology or equivalent, tailored to BVLOS flights, with appropriate operational and airspace mitigations
🔸 Annexes A–D: Provide templates and practical guidance on AAE requests, operator obligations and example scenarios such as wind turbine inspection or search and rescue support
🔸 Relationship with Other Approvals: Clarifies when AAE use may require additional approvals, such as flight under a PDRA or airspace change proposals (ACP) for recurring use
The document reinforces that CAP3040 supports operators in safely exploring non-standard UAS use cases within a managed risk framework.
Spain’s CAA (Agencia Estatal de Seguridad Aérea, or AESA) has published its national Performance Plan for the fourth reference period (RP4: 2025–2029), following European Commission approval. The plan defines performance objectives for air navigation services in four key areas: safety, capacity, environment and cost-efficiency, in line with the EU Single European Sky performance and charging framework.
Key elements of the plan include:
🔸 Safety: Focuses on enhancing the effectiveness of safety management (EoSM) through maturity assessments verified by AESA, EASA and the Performance Review Body
🔸 Environment: Aims to improve horizontal flight efficiency and reduce emissions via enhanced routing and performance monitoring (KEA indicator)
🔸 Capacity: Targets reductions in en-route (ERD) and arrival (TAD) ATFM delays to address ATM capacity constraints.
🔸 Cost-efficiency: Sets binding targets for reducing unit costs in en-route and terminal navigation services, with annual monitoring of real and exempt costs
As the national supervisory authority, AESA coordinated the plan’s development with stakeholders across the aviation sector and is responsible for ongoing performance monitoring, annual reporting to the European Commission and verifying compliance with financial, organisational and insurance obligations.
The final plan was adopted by Spain’s Secretariat of Air and Maritime Transport on 5 September 2025 and is now available on AESA’s website.
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See you in the skies and beyond,
Team Murzilli
Quality Policy of Murzilli Consulting - Spanish office
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
Quality Policy of Murzilli Consulting - German office
The activities developed by M&K Germany GmbH according to the requirements expressed in the International ISO 9001: 2015 standard are:
Consultancy on Uncrewed Aerial Systems (Drones) and other related areas in a wide range of services, including: "Unmanned aerial systems (drone) consultancy".
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 Germany GmbH 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
2st Ed.; 16/02/2026
Chef Executive Office
