UAS+

The WG was created in February 2014 in order to respond to the increasing interest in the subject, and to gather expertise to be used in the rulemakings on RPAS in EASA, Parliament and other technical groups such as JARUS. The name of the group was changed to UAS+ WG in 2020.

Main issues

Over the past decades, Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), also called Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) – have been introduced in increasing numbers across many nations and mainly military services. But today, anyone can buy a remote controlled aircraft and use it in civil airspace. The commercial advantages and possibilities of these UAS or RPAS seem almost unlimited and because of decreasing costs - also the recreational user will be a new partner in airspace. However, integration of UAS or RPAS into the existing airspace is faced with many challenges. Given the shape and size of drones, they might not be visible to other traffic, especially when speed is taken into account.

Moreover, UAS or RPAS – even light ones below 1kg – can cause immense damage to helicopters, the impact of damage to fixed-wing commercial aircraft is not even evaluated yet. The potential safety (and security!) risks are immense, and the safety and security aspects of integrating UAS or RPAS into airspace need to be carefully addressed by the regulators.

All those issues are in the core of the UAS+ WG. For more information on the aims and tasks of the WG, please read its Terms of reference.