The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has published a new set of documents that aims to simplify the path to carrying out more drone operations across Europe.
The new Means of Compliance (MoC) provides guidance for the design of drones classified as specific assurance integrity level (SAIL) III under the Specific Operations Risk Assessment (SORA) methodology.
EASA’s Airworthiness Task Force, established in November 2022 under the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Technical Body, has developed the MoC. UAS to be operated in SAIL III should comply with design operational safety objectives as per the MoC and their compliance should be declared by means of the associated declaration form. The form covers scheduled and unscheduled maintenance requirements, airworthiness limitations, maintenance instructions, and maintenance task identification.
“Applicants are also encouraged to apply the safe controllability tests defined by the published ASD-STAN prEN 4709-001; and assess human-interface aspects utilising the principles expressed in the proposed SAIL III MoC to OSO#19/#20″, EASA says. “Applicants who, alternatively, intend to demonstrate SAIL III compliance with a functional test-based method, should contact their competent authority for guidance.”
Drone project manager at EASA, Natale di Rubbo, said the MoC’s easier approval process paves the way for safer, faster and more diverse drone applications.
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