Madrid, 01 August 2024 (EASA)

On Tuesday 25 June 2024, Royal Decree 517/2024 implementing the legal regime for the civilian use of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) entered into force. This Royal Decree UAS entails, among others, the definition of the new entities designated for training in a specific category under operational authorisation, as well as the requirements to be met by the instructors, examiners and evaluators who provide training in them. In addition, the Royal Decree UAS includes the definition of the new training requirements related to aeronautical communications, that is, the theoretical and practical requirements to obtain the new radio operator certificate in those cases where it is necessary. 

Designated entities

The new Royal Decree UAS establishes the necessary requirements for designated entities that intend to provide the training of remote pilots that will operate in the ‘Specific’ category under an operational authorisation, among which the need to submit a responsible declaration addressed to AESA in advance is highlighted.

One of the main requirements of the designated entities is that they cannot be of a single-person nature, having to have within the organization a series of organizational figures, among which the Responsible Manager of the entity, the Training Manager, the Security Manager, Responsible for the quality management system and the Instructors, examiners and evaluators of remote pilots stand out.

In addition, the designated entities must have an Instruction Manual where the essential aspects of the training are collected, and a Management System in which a security policy is established describing the general principles and philosophies regarding the organization in terms of safety, as well as a quality system. Guides and guidance material to facilitate the application of the legislation have been made available to users on the EASA website in the Designated Entities section.
 
The entry into force of the aspects related to the designated entities, and therefore the possibility of submitting the declarations, will be effective three months after the publication in the "Official State Gazette", that is, on September 5, 2024.

All this information and more is available in the Designated Entities section of the AESA website.

Instructors, examiners and evaluators of remote pilots of Designated Entities.

In addition, the new Royal Decree UAS states that all personnel designated as instructor, examiner and evaluator in a designated entity and wishing to provide training in the ‘specific’ category under an operational authorisation, must have a certificate of instructor, examiner and remote pilot evaluator issued by AESA

The instructor, examiner and evaluator certificate to provide training in the ‘specific’ category under an operational authorisation is divided into a theoretical part, which will be mandatory and common to all users who wish to be instructor, examiner and evaluator in a designated entity.

With regard to the practical examination, the practical examination at EASA must be carried out and passed for instructors, examiners and assessors who intend to provide training in those operations which, in accordance with the SORA risk assessment methodology, present an intrinsic ground risk of the operation equal to or greater than 5.

The entry into force of the aspects related to the designated entities and therefore the possibility of submitting the declarations, will be effective three months after the publication in the "Official State Gazette", that is, on September 5, 2024.

All this information and more is available in the Training section of Instructor, examiner and evaluator of remote pilots of Designated Entities of the AESA website.

UAS Radiophonist Certificate

One of the most important aspects that stand out in the new training defined in Royal Decree 517/2024 is that relating to training in UAS Radiophonist. In this point, it is established that in those cases where the use of the air band (aeronautical mobile service) is required to establish aeronautical communications, remote pilots must have a certificate of theoretical training as a radiophonist issued by AESA, and a certificate of practical training as a radiophonist issued by an examiner authorized by AESA.

With regard to the theoretical training certificate , all UAS pilots who wish to have the certificate must complete an online training provided by AESA, as well as take an online pass test also provided by the Agency. This training is already available in the following section of the EASA Electronic Office. 

Once the theoretical knowledge test has been passed, the training must be completed by obtaining a certificate of practical training as a UAS Radiophonist, which must be issued by an examiner authorised by AESA, after demonstrating his competence in aeronautical communications.

Additionally, it is established that those Radiophonist certificates issued by an approved training organization (ATO) or ultralight school in accordance with Article 33(1)(e) of Royal Decree 1036/2017, of 15 December, will remain valid for two years from the entry into force of Royal Decree 517/2024, that is,until 25 June 2026.

You can find all the detailed and updated information in the UAS Radiophonist Training section of the AESA website.

Provisions common to remote pilot training entities

Finally, Royal Decree 517/2024 in Section 3a of Chapter IV lays down a series of provisions common to the authorised, recognised and designated entities concerning amendments, cessations and termination of the right to carry out their activity, creating requirements common to all of them and their relationship with the Agency.

On June 26, the Spanish Aviation Safety Agency (AESA), in collaboration with the DGAC, in its commitment to public service, held the first information day for EASA Operators. In it, the main changes produced with the entry into force of the new Royal Decree UAS were detailed, in addition to resolving the main doubts of the attendees. For all those people who want to revisit the day, it is available through the AESA YouTube channel, in the following link.