◇ Tag
Posts tagged “eu”
2026-07-17
Latvia, one of Europe's leading drone hubs: what it means for an A1/A3 pilot
A new study calls Latvia one of Europe's fastest-growing drone industries — but most of that growth is defence and testing activity, not the civilian job market an A1/A3 certificate opens.
- latvia
- industry
- commercial
2026-07-17
Belgium's Drone Enforcement Report 2026 — What It Means for Certified Pilots
Belgium's aviation authority has published its 2025 enforcement data — unauthorized light shows, a drone at 500 m, and flights without required authorization. How these three violation types turn into a checkable pre-flight list.
- regulation
- eu
- safety
2026-07-17
EU Lifts Aerial Spray Ban — What It Means for Agricultural Drone Operators in 2026
The EU has amended the Sustainable Use of Pesticides Directive for the first time in 16 years, opening a legal pathway for spray drones — but Italy's stalled implementing decree shows the national level isn't ready yet, and spraying stays a specific-category operation regardless.
- agriculture
- regulation
- eu
2026-07-17
EASA's updated Easy Access Rules for UAS: what changed for A1/A3 pilots
EASA released a new Easy Access Rules for UAS edition in June 2026 — what this document actually is, what changed in this edition, and whether you need to revisit anything you've already studied.
- regulation
- easa
- eu
2026-07-10
STS-01 vs STS-02: the two EU standard scenarios compared
STS-01 is VLOS with a C5 drone over a controlled ground area that may sit in a populated environment; STS-02 is BVLOS with a C6 drone and airspace observers in a sparsely populated one. The exact parameters — heights, distances, buffers and the pilot certificate — from Appendix 1 to Regulation (EU) 2019/947.
- sts
- specific-category
- bvlos
2026-07-09
How long is the A1/A3 certificate valid, and does it work across the EU?
After you pass, the A1/A3 proof is valid for 5 years and recognised across the European Union. Airspace zones, insurance, and local procedures still need a country-by-country check.
- exam
- a1-a3
- certificate
2026-07-09
EASA A1/A3 drone exam in Estonia: LOIS portal, fee and preparation
How Estonia handles the A1/A3 drone certificate through Transpordiamet and LOIS, what the official page says about the exam, and how to prepare before applying.
- a1-a3
- estonia
- eu
2026-07-09
EASA A1/A3 drone exam in Lithuania: official portal, registration and prep
Where to take the official A1/A3 drone exam in Lithuania, which authority runs the portal, and how dronelingo preparation still applies when the certificate is issued outside Latvia.
- a1-a3
- lithuania
- eu
2026-07-09
EASA A1/A3 drone exam in Poland: ULC portal, free training and prep
Poland's official A1/A3 drone exam route through the Civil Aviation Authority system, what the ULC says about price and format, and how to prepare before taking it.
- a1-a3
- poland
- eu
2026-07-07
EASA NPA 2026-103: the 100-gram drone rule is now on paper
EASA's draft NPA 2026-103 moves the training and Remote ID line from 250 to 100 grams and adds a takeoff lockout without an operator ID. The Specific category, meanwhile, gets lighter. First changes no earlier than mid-2028.
- regulation
- easa
- eu
2026-07-06
Drone Delivery's Noise Problem: Why Europe's Real Fight Is on the Ground
In June 2026 an Irish county council stripped Manna's Dublin drone hub of planning permission over noise — after 82,000 deliveries. Amazon had already walked away from Italy. Here is what the EU actually regulates about drone noise, and why the ground, not the sky, decides whether drone delivery scales.
- delivery
- commercial
- noise
2026-06-23
Flying your drone in another EU country: what your Latvian registration and A1/A3 carry across the border
Your Latvian operator number and A1/A3 are recognised across the whole EASA area. What that means in practice, what does NOT travel with you — geographical zones and insurance — and what to check before you fly abroad.
- open-category
- registration
- a1-a3
2026-06-17
A 100 kg Cargo Drone Joins Black Forest Mountain Rescue
Bergwacht Schwarzwald is bringing a DJI FlyCart 100 into service — a drone that flies up to 100 kg of rescue gear into hard-to-reach terrain. We explain why the payload jump matters, and why cargo is allowed but carrying people is not.
- cargo-drones
- search-and-rescue
- civil-protection
2026-06-08
BVLOS in the EU: The One Rule the Drone Market Turns On
Flying beyond visual line of sight is banned in the Open category — it moves you into the EU's Specific category. Here are the four routes to a BVLOS authorisation, why it unlocks delivery and inspection, and the real bottleneck: airspace integration.
- regulation
- easa
- eu
2026-06-08
How Europe's Airports and Critical Infrastructure Defend Against Drones
After the autumn-2025 airport closures, the EU presented a counter-drone Action Plan. We explain the split between detection and defeat, why civilians cannot use jammers, and what it means for an ordinary pilot.
- counter-uas
- security
- eu
2026-06-08
U-space: How the EU Plans to Open the Sky to Drones
U-space is the EU framework for managing many drones in low-altitude airspace — in force since 2023. We explain the four mandatory services, how a U-space airspace works, and how far the "sky full of drones" really is.
- regulation
- easa
- eu
2026-06-06
Remote ID in 2026: What's Already Mandatory and Why the Threshold May Drop to 100 g
Remote ID has been mandatory for class-marked drones since 2024. In 2026 the European Commission is pushing to drop the threshold from 250 g to 100 g — which would pull in nearly every camera drone. Here is what already applies and what to do.
- regulations
- remote-id
- eu
2026-05-17
EU Aviation Strategy Consultation and the Drone Sector
The EU opened its new aviation strategy consultation until May 21, 2026. For the drone sector, this is the moment to influence policy language before it moves into certification.
- regulation
- easa
- eu
2026-05-14
Drone insurance in Latvia and the EU — how to read the requirements
A factual guide to what mandatory third-party liability cover actually means in Latvia and why the current CAA matrix matters more than generic summaries.
- insurance
- regulations
- eu
2026-05-14
EU drone regulation 2019/947 — plain-language summary for hobby pilots
A plain-language introduction to how Reg. (EU) 2019/947 actually works in practice — categories, registration, qualification, C-classes, and national geographical zones.
- regulations
- easa
- eu
2026-04-26
NHS Drone Deliveries Go Urban: What Matternet and Apian's London Operations Mean for European Operators
Matternet and Apian launch medical sample drone delivery for NHS hospitals in central London — one of Europe's first large-scale urban drone logistics deployments and its regulatory implications for EU operators.
- commercial
- delivery
- eu