The take-off of civil RPAS activities in France

How a pragmatic and progressive

regulation services helped the rise
of a industry
Patrick GANDIL- DGAC
MARCH 2015
Civil RPAS industry and regulation SUMMARY

1. The RPAS sector and its growth

2. The French rulemaking process

3. Prevention of malicious acts

4. Research & development

Civil RPAS industry THE SECTOR AND ITS GROWTH

A GROWING SECTOR…
 2012 : 50 companies
 2015 : 1 300 companies operating 2 250 RPAS / 3 000 jobs
 Turnover 2014 (professional RPAS) : 50 M€

…MAINLY DRIVEN BY SMALL AND MEDIUM COMPANIES…

 45 manufacturers (4 offering fully self designed products)
 many start-ups with high level of innovation
 providing services and data more than aerial vehicles

…MAJOR COMPANIES CURRENTLY ADDRESSING THE R&D FIELD

 The regulation THE RULEMAKING PROCESS AND OBJECTIVES

Regulation of 2012 allowed the rise of the activity

Objectives :
• Ensure safety of third parties on the ground and of other
aircraft
• Allow the development of the industry
Methodology:
■ Risk-based innovative approach
■ Strong relation with stakeholders
■ Focus on the type of operations rather than on the vehicle
■ Progressive : do not regulate to anticipate every possible
need
■ Open: allowing exemptions
■ Adaptive :
■ The next version expected mid 2015
■ On going work for new provisions concerning pilot training and
competencies
The regulation SIMPLE PRINCIPLES

 Rules for recreational usage, aerial work and experimentations

 Operations
 forbidden in the vicinity of airports
 subject to prior authorizations in populated areas

Visual Line Of Sight Beyond Visual Line Of

Sight
VLOS
BVLOS

SCENARIO 1 SCENARIO 3 SCENARIO 2 SCENARIO 4

Unpopulated area Populated area Unpopulated area Unpopulated area
Security perimeter
No third party on the No distance
surface limitation
< 25 kg < 4 kg < 1 km < 2 kg
< 150 m < 150 m < 25 kg < 150 m
< 50 m
The regulation: preparing the future SUPPORTING THE INDUSTRY

■ A structure created to foster the sector development

■ That brings together operators, manufacturers, multinational
companies in aerospace and defence, main contractors (railway and
energy companies) and regulators (civil and military)
■ In order to face the challenges and support the sector development

National council
for civil RPAS

Operations, Support and

Technology and
regulation and promotion of the
safety industry
uses
Security risks SITUATION AND CHALLENGES

 Numerous eyewitnesses of illegal RPAS flights over cities or

restricted areas : a large number of them were wrong
testimonies
 Yet, a real issue that has to be addressed and that mobilize the
government services
 Solutions to detect and destroy RPAS in case of malicious acts
are necessary
 Devices for identification must be assessed in terms of costs
and benefits
 Involve the industry (including SME) in the process
 Promote responsible use of recreational RPAS - A pedagogic
flyer is widely distributed in retail stores
Security risks RESPONSIBLE USE OF RPAS
 Challenges FRENCH PARTICIPATION

OPERATIONAL DEMONSTRATION OF RPAS IN EUROPEAN AIRSPACE

ODREA project
Rockwell Collins France, DGAC/DSNA, ENAC,
SAGEM ENAC
 Fast time simulations
 Test Sense & avoid algorithms
 Real flights in automn 2014 in Toulouse
with an optronics detect an avoid system
 RPAS : Patroller SAGEM with a pilot on
board

TEMPAERIS Project
 DGAC/DSNA, Airbus group, SOPRA STERIA, ENAC
 Real flights in Bordeaux in February 2015, with a
focus on management of fail modes. RPAS with a
safety pilot on board
 ATM human factors study (upcoming)
 Integration of small RPAS in airport environment
(upcoming)
 FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

ATM integration RPAS operations in The French RPAS

trials in France France regulation

Worshop 3 Worshop 2 Worshop 6

Catherine Ronflé-Nadaud Muriel Preux (DGAC) & Fabien Guillotin (DGAC)
(ENAC) Bastien Mancini (Delair Tech)

And for more information about prevention of malicious acts,

please contact Colonel Francis Hubert (GTA)
Thank you