Nov 28 2016
Commissioner for Transport Violeta Bulc stated today the intention of making drones part of the European citizens' daily lives by 2019. New common standards will be put in place to create a U-Space: an efficient framework for all individuals and businesses to operate drones at lower levels, up to 150m high. The U-Space will make denser traffic of automated drones operations over longer distances possible, including over cities, and so open the door to a drone service market with huge economic potential. It would be a reliable system guaranteeing easy and fair access for everyone. At the same time it would provide a safe environment, and make privacy and security rules effective. As a first step, the Commission will present a concept on how drone operations should be organised in a U-Space within the next 6 months and start demonstration projects as soon as possible.
Commissioner Bulc said: "Drone technologies are a unique opportunity for the European economy to generate additional growth and prosperity: they open the door to new markets for innovative services with immense potential. I want the EU to remain on top of this, to steer and lead the global development of this technology."
The occasion for this announcement was a conference in Warsaw about the future of drones, in the presence of all the industry with a stake in this new technology. Following a declaration of intent, the picture of a fully functioning U-Space does not look far ahead in the future. The infrastructure, software, and data to build a U-Space are already available. The challenge is to integrate the existing building blocks into a genuine efficient system and, at the same time, tackle safety, security and environmental concerns.
The way forward to speed up the development of the U-Space follows three main threads:
BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND WHAT HAS BEEN DONE SO FAR
The potential of the drone services market has been calculated between €200 million to several billion depending on scenarios, only for the manufacturing and service markets. This is a unique opportunity for Europe's economy. But to be exploited in a safe and efficient way it needs a legislative framework. The Commission has promised to deliver the necessary rules and common standards for the functioning of drones operations in the EU at all levels:
Source: EUROPEAN COMMISSION