Jun162017

Aviation: Commission is taking the European drone sector to new heights

EU
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Following a request by the European Commission, the Single European Sky Air traffic management Research Joint Undertaking[1] – whose role is to develop the new generation European air traffic management system – has today unveiled its blueprint to make drone use in low-level airspace safe, secure and environmentally friendly. This “U-Space” covers altitudes of up to 150 metres and will pave the way for the development of a strong and dynamic EU drone services market. Registration of drones and drone operators, their e-identification and geo-fencing should be in place by 2019. Today’s vision paper is part of the Commission’s drive to deliver on its ambitious Aviation Strategy and unleash the full economic potential of drones. This requires an effective legislative framework that can foster European leadership and competitiveness, while addressing a number of legitimate concerns, the first of which is safety.

EU Commissioner for Transport, Violeta Bulc, said: “Drones mean innovation, new services for citizens, new business models and a huge potential for economic growth. We need the EU to be in the driving seat and have a safe drone services market up and running by 2019. The EU needs to take a leading role worldwide in developing the right framework for this market to flourish, by unleashing the benefits for key economic sectors.”

The paper outlines a number of basic principles. The U-Space should be:

  • Safe: safety at low altitude levels will be just as good as that for traditional manned aviation. The concept is to develop a system similar to that of Air Traffic Management for manned aviation.
  • Automated: the system will provide information for highly automated or autonomous drones to fly safely and avoid obstacles or collisions.
  • Up and running by 2019: for the basic services like registration, e-identification and geo-fencing. However, further U-Space services and their corresponding standards will need to be developed in the future.

What are the next steps?

The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is working with Member States and industry to produce effective EU-wide safety rules that are proportionate to the risk of the operation. These rules will implement the EU’s basic aviation safety regulation which the European Parliament and the Council (i.e. the EU Member States) are expected to adopt in the coming months.

The Commission, through the SESAR Joint Undertaking, will finance a range of drone projects, focusing on the integration of drones into the aviation system.

Finally, an expert group will be established to act as a sounding board for the further development of European drone policy.

Background information:

Delivering services in urban areas, collection of data for a wide range of industries, infrastructure inspections, precision agriculture, transportation and logistics are just some of the possible applications of this technology. The drone services market is expected to grow substantially. Estimates vary between €10bn by 2035 and €127bn for the coming years. A recent forecast predicts that by 2020 the global drone market size will grow by 42% in precision agriculture, 26% in media and entertainment, by 36% in inspection and monitoring of infrastructures, and by 30% for leisure activities[2].

Current common European rules only cover drones weighing above 150 kilograms. Below this threshold, Member States are responsible to regulate. While national rules allow expertise to grow, they often diverge and cause a fragmentation of the EU internal market. Such fragmentation hampers the development of new products, the swift introduction of technologies and may also create safety risks. In December 2015, the Commission therefore proposed to create an EU-wide framework for drones as part of its Aviation Strategy. This requires the establishment of a regulatory framework, including standards, and the safe integration of drones into the airspace, on which today’s blueprint delivers.

For more information:

U-Space blueprint

European Aviation Safety Agency: draft technical rules for certain categories of drones

SESAR Joint Undertaking

An Aviation Strategy for Europe

Q&A: The EU drone policy (November 2016)

[1] The Single European Sky Air Traffic Management Research Joint Undertaking (SESAR JU) is the European public-private partnership managing and coordinating Research and Development in Air Traffic Management. Founded by the European Union and Eurocontrol, the SESAR JU has 19 members, who together with their partners and affiliate associations represent over 100 companies working in Europe and beyond.

[2]Source: MarketsandMarkets, (2015), “Analysis & Forecast to 2020”

Jun162017

UNICEF-backed projects for 9 million children in and around Syria ‘on the verge of being cut off’

United Nations
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16 June 2017 – Programmes supported by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to assist more than nine million children in Syria and neighbouring countries are on the verge of being cut off due to a critical funding shortage.

&#8220This is the most severe funding gap UNICEF has had since we started responding to the Syria crisis, one of the largest humanitarian operations in the history of the organisation,&#8221 said Geert Cappelaere, UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, in a press release.

&#8220Humanitarian needs continue to grow by the day inside Syria and in neighbouring countries, while pressure on generous host communities is seriously jeopardizing their ability to make ends meet,&#8221 he added.

UNICEF appealed for $1.4 billion for its emergency operations in 2017 inside Syria and in neighbouring Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt. To date, UNICEF has received less than 25 per cent of its funding requirements.

Pressure on generous host communities is seriously jeopardizing their ability to make ends meet

In its seventh year and with no end in sight, the war in Syria has become the largest humanitarian and displacement crisis in the world since World War II. Inside Syria, nearly 6 million children are in need of assistance while more than 2.5 million live as refugees across Syria’s borders. Neighbouring countries, already supporting large numbers of vulnerable people, have received 80 per cent of all refugees from Syria.

Without an injection of new funds, some critical and lifesaving activities supported by UNICEF are at a serious risk being cut off.

These include safe water and sanitation services for 1.2 million children living in camps, informal settlements and host communities; access to healthcare and essential nutrition treatments for almost 5.4 million children; cash assistance to families that helps keep nearly half a million children in school; and the distribution of clothes and blankets in winter months.

UNICEF calls for a number of immediate actions to put an end to the war in Syria, prioritize the protection of civilians and the rights of children, improve the delivery of services and infrastructure such as healthcare, education and water in refugee host countries; and provide much-needed financial support to organisations like UNICEF to continue lifesaving assistance.