Drone certification - transitional provisions of the new EU law
The transitional provisions of the new drone law apply from 31.12.2020 to 1.01.2023. According to the EU Commission's Executive Order 2019/945 and 2019/947 drones distributed in the EU must meet certain standards (assigned classes) and bear the CE marking. According to the decision of the EASA (European Union Agency for the Safety of Air Navigation). Aviation Safety) will be able to certify drones introduced to the market before 1.01.2023 (before the target regulations come into force).
Drone certification - you don't have to delay buying a drone!
The standards of the transitional regulations described by Regulation 2019/945 presuppose, among other things, the requirement of an identification label of the class given to drones (C0, C1, C2, C3, C4), which we have written about before here. These classes define the required equipment and performance of the drone.
The regulation did not assume recertification of drones previously placed on the market. It was only with Regulation 2019/947 that the Civil Aviation Authority introduced the possibility of class and cE certificate, which is a manufacturer's declaration that the marked product meets the requirements of the so-called "New Approach" directives of the European Union, drones that were launched before 1.01.2023.
No EU-compliant class during the period of transitional regulations
Drones that are not classified according to EU standards,placed on the market during the period of transitional regulations may be used to 31.12.2022 under certain rules in the open category:
- a drone with a weight of up to 500 g - in subcategory A1 by pilots with competencies defined by the Member State concerned - qualifying weight, e.g. Mini 2,
- a drone weighing up to 2 kg - at a distance of 50 meters horizontally from people, and pilots are competent as for the A2 subcategory - by weight qualifies, for example, the popularMavic Air 2;
- a drone weighing up to 25 kg - in subcategory A3, and pilots are competent as for subcategory A1 - by weight qualifies, for example. Mavic 2 Pro.
Source: ULC recording European drone regulations -Open category.
The possibility of recertification of "old" drones applies to the period of transitional regulations, which runs until the end of 2022. What, then, to do with such a drone from 1.01.2023, when the following will come into effectnew rules unifying aviation law in the European Union?
According to Regulation 2019/947, BSPs that do not have such a label (and were not constructed for personal use), and were placed on the market before 1.01.2023, may continue to be used under the following conditions from 1.01.2023:
- in subcategory A1, as long as the unmanned aircraft has a maximum takeoff weight of less than 250 grams including payload, and the pilot does not require training - here again by weight qualifies DJI Mini 2.
- in subcategory A3, as long as the unmanned aircraft has a maximum takeoff weight of less than 25 kg including fuel and payload. Required pilot competencies as for subcategory A3.
Drone recertification and CE marking - how it should be done?
CE certification mark, Source: Wikipedia
European Union Agency for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products. The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) presents two options for converting drones already on the market to CE-marked drones:
- by the manufacturer - by recalling products (returning the product by the user as part of the control procedure), updating hardware or software as part of the production control procedure, assigning a new serial number, affixing a class identification label, issuing a new CE declaration,
- by the user - by having the owner perform a software update under the full control of the manufacturer, by having the manufacturer send a new CE declaration, class identification label and new serial number plate to the owner, and by having the owner affix the class identification label and new serial number plate to the drone.
The process of converting the drone so that it complies with the EU Commission regulation is the responsibility of the manufacturer.
DJI drones and CE certification
Currently, none of DJI's drones have a legally valid certificate that complies with the new EU regulation. This is due to the fact that, at the moment, the certification standards have not been confirmed and the authority responsible for granting CE certification has not been designated.
DJI consumer products are mainly used in the open category (low-risk flying), in which the CE class marking of one of the related classes C0-C4 is mandatory. Any product without a CE class label can still be used in the limited open category under the new EU regulation.
Any products without CE marking may continue to be used in the open category until December 31, 2022., and also after the transition period - in both cases under limited conditions (described above in the article).
DJI is currently working with industry organizations, regulators and authorities to help shape the European standards on which CE marking is based and the process for compliance with EU Commission Implementing Regulation 2019/945 and 2019/947.
The manufacturer has implemented systems in the drones to adapt them to EU requirements and most likelydJI products will not require extensive interventions, such as their modifications.
Certification standards are being prepared with the active participation of DJI, and once the standards are ready, the manufacturer will work to ensure the compliance of individual products.
DJI is currently looking for a technical inspection association to provide product certification services. It must be confirmed as a so-called "notified body" for the final CE marking.
Once the standards are confirmed by regulatory authorities and notified bodies, the manufacturer will publish a list of products that will be retroactively CE marked.
Summary
The issue of drone certification has created a lot of confusion in the drone community. Many people are holding off on buying a drone until models with current CE markings are already on the market. As it turns out - unnecessarily. Although current drones on the market cannot simply be retroactively labeled, they can go through a process that will verify that they meet the new requirements and turn them legally into a "new" product. In the event that the drone does not meet the certification standards, it will be allowed to continue to operate in the Open category with certain restrictions until December 31, 2022, as well as thereafter in the A3 category.
The article was written based on a presentation by the Department of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles of the Civil Aviation Authority "Transitional regulations and entry into force of EU regulations" and information provided by the manufacturer DJI.
She is a lover of art and nature, so she is particularly captivated by the use of new technologies to protect nature and explore it from a different, broader perspective.