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EU reaches a long-awaited deal on drone rules

Drones that can transfer more than 80 Joules of kinetic energy in case of impact will require mandatory registration and will have to be individually marked for identification, under the new EU-wide EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency) Regulation, endorsed by the EU-level ambassadors in December.

For areas other than the registration threshold the EASA will develop more detailed rules on the basis of the principles laid down in the Regulation that was green-lighted by EU Member States before Christmas. Although the rules will need to be confirmed by both the European Parliament and national governments, Europe is getting closer to having its first legal RPAS framework.

 

Drones that can transfer more than 80 Joules of kinetic energy in case of impact will require mandatory registration

The ‘drone-deal’ is a part of a broader revision of the EASA Basic Regulation that was initiated in 2015. The new agreement extends the EASA's mandate to safety-related aspects of security, including cyber security, protection of the environment and examining the interdepencies between socio-economic factors and safety. It establishes a framework for the pooling and sharing of aviation inspectors and other specialists to support member states in certification and oversight tasks. The agreement will also create a new support mechanism for Member States that will include technical assistance for certification, oversight and enforcement tasks (source: EU)

The procedure is expected to be completed in spring 2018, with the new EASA Regulation applying as of late 2019 or 2020, thereby making EASA fit for the safety challenges of the next decade