European Commission and European Investment Bank announce launch of “European Drone Investment – Advisory Platform”

The European Commission and the European Investment Bank announced on 17.10.2019 the launch of a „European Drone Investment – Advisory Platform“ to support innovation and investment in drones. Drones are generally regarded as playing an important role in the future of aviation. The aim of the initiative is to improve access to EU support in this area and to develop a better understanding of the market in order to improve investment beyond 2021.

The recently adopted EU rules on the technical requirements for drones and the operation of drones form the basis for one of the largest drones markets in the world. Further legislative work is underway, including the development of the so-called „European Standard Scenarios“ for drones to facilitate commercial drone operations without prior individual authorisations. The European Commission is also working with EASA to develop a framework for the provision of services under the U-Space initiative, which aims to enable complex drone operations with a high degree of automation.  Finally, a systematic review of all existing EU aviation rules has been launched by EASA to identify the necessary changes to improve applicability to drone operations in the ‘certified’ category, similar to what exists in manned aviation.

This regulatory framework will provide the basis for supporting investment and ensuring European leadership in innovative technologies and intelligent applications serving people and businesses.

Following the establishment of the European Drone Investment Advisory Platform, a study will assess market potential and investment needs in EU Member States. The results will highlight the possible future mechanisms of support that may be integrated in the future EU Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) programme.

More information on the program may be found here.