The first session of the conference was dedicated to International Regulatory Activities, with presentations from ICAO, JARUS, Eurocontrol, European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), the Civil Aviation Authority, UK, and Federal Aviation Administration USA. To the surprise of some and to the delight of many, they all sounded as if they were either saying the same thing in slightly different words, or at very least had been carefully orchestrated to dovetail into on another.
But the undoubted highlight of yesterday’s session was the final item – the European Commission UAS Panel. Umberto Rossi from European Commission – DG Mobility & Transport, and Caterine Ebah-Moussa, European Commission – DG Enterprise, outlined an eight month programme of hearings that the Commission is organizing to invite all stakeholders to submit comments and observations on any and all aspects of UAS operations in Europe – small & large aircraft, SMEs, job creation, social implications – absolutely anything that impacts on the development the non-military use of UAS in Europe. The findings will be presented in a paper (“A Strategy for the Future of UAS in the European Union”) to the Commission, with any recommendations to the political body to drive through whatever legislation may be necessary to bring about the desired development.
To have united all of the key actors together on the same stage and acting together was indeed a great achievement. As Peter van Blyenburgh put it: “This is a historic moment. To have the European Commission together with all of the European Regulatory bodies on one stage and singing from the same song sheet is fantastic progress”. He ended with a plea to the community to take maximum advantage of the opportunity being offered to shape the future of UAS in Europe and contribute actively to the consultation process in order to achieve the best possible outcome.