Very Low Level Flight Rules for Manned and Unmanned Aircraft Operations

Journal of Intelligent & Robotic Systems (2024) 110:82 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10846-024-02084-5 REGULAR PAPER Very Low Level Flight Rules for Manned and Unmanned Aircraft Operations Anna Konert1 · Piotr Kasprzyk1 Received: 8 December 2023 / Accepted: 29 February 2024 © The Author(s) 2024 Abstract An analysis of the development of legal regulations regarding unmanned civil aviation leads to the conclusion that the current air traffic rules are among the key issues that require amending. Are drones allowed to fly at any height? Can drones fly freely over a person’s house or garden, several meters above the ground? What is the minimum allowable height for drone flights? The method of study consisted of content analysis of the existing legislation. Current doctrines were confronted with the existing regulations, documents, materials, safety reports, and statistics. The results of the study show that the existing air traffic rules, precisely in the case of aircraft operations performed by manned and unmanned aviation at very low heights, are definitely practical in nature. First, in most countries violations of air traffic rules are prohibited acts subject to criminal penalty. Second, determining the principles of air traffic for air operations is of crucial importance for determining legally permissible interference in property ownership. The urban air mobility is outside the scope of this research. Keywords Very low level flight rules · Manned aircraft operations · Unmanned aircraft operations · Aviation regulations · Unmanned aircraft regulations 1 The Development of Legal Regulations in Unmanned Aviation It is quite obvious that unmanned aircraft is aircraft as per the legal regulations concerning aviation safety [1, 2]. The fundamental differences between manned and unmanned aircraft suggest that the term ‘unmanned aircraft system’ (UAS) is more appropriate [3, 4]. Such a system comprises not only the aircraft itself but also the instruments and solutions that are meant to ensure that a UAS pilot remains in control of the operation being performed [5] and that the pilot has the necessary situational awareness of the environment in which the UAS operation is performed, in particular of the air traffic in the airspace. Legal regulations regarding UAS operations must, by definition, take into consideration the specificity of unmanned aviation operations [2]. The differences between manned and unmanned aircraft operations * Anna Konert Piotr Kasprzyk 1 are so significant that a substantial part of the existing regulations regarding air operations will not be applicable at all to unmanned aircraft operations, while an even larger part requires essential modifications directed at unmanned aircraft operations. A study conducted in 2007 in the USA estimated that among the existing air safety regulations: 1) 30% may be applied in current form to unmanned aircraft; 2) 54% may be applied to unmanned aircraft regulations but with necessary amendments; 3) 16% may not be applied to unmanned aircraft at all [5]. This was, of course, a starting point to develop new regulations in the last 15 years. Within aviation law, the legal regulations regarding unmanned aircraft are being developed on three levels: at the international level, where the standards and recommended practices comprised in annexes to the Chicago Convention, as adopted by the ICAO, play a crucial role; at the national level, where these standards and recommended practices are implemented according to the legal system of a country in the appropriate legal acts of national law; and at the supranational level which is especially relevant in the case of European Union member states where the competence of determining aviation safety legislation has been delegated to the EU, in addition to the establishment of a specialized Lazarski University, Warsaw, Poland Vol.:(0123456789) 82 Page 2 of 8 body, namely the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) [2, 6–8]. Accordingly, a permanent panel called the Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems Panel has been entrusted with the task of developing a regulatory framework at the ICAO level. The Panel’s work resulted in further amendments to Chicago Convention annexes. The first amendments to Annex 1 Personnel Licensing were adopted as early as in 2018 and introduced a new type of licence, i.e. remote pilot licence. In 2021, amendments were adopted to Annex 8 Airworthiness of Aircraft, regulating certificate requirements for UAS. A new volume was also adopted to be incorporated in Annex 10 Aeronautical Telecommunications: Volume VI – Communication Systems and Procedures Relating to Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems C2 Link. Furthermore, work is well underway to establish a new volume to be incorporated in Annex 6 regarding air operations, a volume dedicated to unmanned aircraft operations. At the same time, amendments to Annex 11 (Air Traffic Services) and Annex 2 (Rules of the Air) are also being developed. At the EU level, the decision laid out in the Civil Aviation Strategy of 2015 [9] to incorporate unmanned aircraft in common air safety rules was of key importance. The basic regulation, i.e. Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2018 on common rules in the field of civil aviation provided the legal basis and framework for the adoption of implementing rules. The most essential of these were two regulations which entered into force on 31 December 2020, namely Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/947 of 24 May 2019 on the rules and procedures for the operation of unmanned aircraft, and Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/945 of 12 March 2019 on unmanned aircraft systems and on thirdcountry operators of unmanned aircraft systems. Regulation 2019/945 contains detailed provisions regarding the design and manufacturing of those UAS that are intended for use within the ‘open’ category. Meanwhile, Regulation 2019/947 lays down detailed provisions concerning operations in the ‘open’ and ‘specific’ categories, including requirements for UAS pilots and operators. Moreover, the legal framework for the U-space was adopted in 2021. Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/664 of 22 April 2021 on a regulatory framework for the U-space, aimed at facilitating the safe and effective integration of manned and unmanned aviation entered into force on 26 January 2023 [10]. 2 Air Traffic Rules: Introduction An analysis of the development of the legal regulations concerning unmanned civil aviation leads to the conclusion that one of the key issues requiring amendments are the current air traffic rules [4]. Three different aspects should be Journal of Intelligent & Robotic Systems (2024) 110:82 considered. First, air traffic rules for UAS operations must be determined, especially during very low level flights. Second, the emergence of UAS operations affects manned aviation air traffic rules, especially in the context of m (...truncated)