The objectives of this Opinion are to:

• maintain a high level of safety at aerodromes by ensuring that:
  • local runway safety teams (LRSTs) and other aerodrome safety committees are established, led and managed by the aerodrome operator;
  • safety is managed during work in progress and suspension of runway operations and runway closure;
  • closed runways or taxiways, either temporarily or permanently, are appropriately marked to prevent their use by aircraft;
  • locations on the movement area with a history or a potential risk of collision or runway incursions are identified and designated as ‘hot spots’;
  • the use of an aerodrome by an aircraft exceeding the certified design characteristics of the aerodrome is assessed and a prior approval is obtained from the competent authority;
• enhance the regularity of operations by ensuring a runway is returned to service as soon as possible in case an aircraft becomes immobilised and protect the pavement from excessive damage caused by aircraft that are not appropriate for the pavement strength; these amendments will also address the outstanding ICAO Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme (USOAP) findings to EASA in the aerodromes domain and ensure compliance with the Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) on the removal of disabled aircraft and overload operations from ICAO Annex 14, Volume I ‘Aerodrome Design and Operations’;
• facilitate and ensure a safe, efficient and smooth transition when a change of aerodrome operator occurs;
• align the requirements for aerodrome operators and apron management service providers with regard to reporting, analysis and follow-up of occurrences in civil aviation with those of Regulation (EU) No 376/2014.

The proposed amendments are expected to enhance operational safety, reduce the risk of damage to aircraft and the risk of runway incursions, minimise the risk of collision between aircraft and between aircraft and vehicles, ensure the regularity of operations, and reduce the administrative burden while ensuring safety when a change of aerodrome operator occurs, as well as to support the implementation of effective occurrence-reporting systems.

This Opinion puts forward the establishment of a comprehensive regulatory framework to address new operational and mobility concepts that are based on innovative technologies, like unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and aircraft with vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) capability, and foster and promote their acceptance and adoption by European citizens.
The Opinion proposes amendments to existing EU aviation regulations and the establishment of two new ones to address:

• the initial airworthiness of UAS subject to certification in accordance with Article 40 of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/945;
• the continuing airworthiness of UAS subject to certification and operated in the ‘specific’ category; and
• the operational requirements applicable to manned VTOL-capable aircraft (VCA).

The specific objectives of the proposed amendments are to:

• ensure a high and uniform level of safety for UAS subject to certification and operated in the ‘specific’ category and for operations with manned VCA;
• enable operators to safely operate manned VCA in the single European sky (SES);
• create the conditions for the safe operation of UAS and of manned VCA in the U-space airspace;
• promote innovation and development in the field of innovative air mobility (IAM) while establishing an efficient, proportionate, and well-designed regulatory framework, free of burdensome requirements that could hinder the development of the UAS market;
• harmonise the regulatory framework across the EU Member States by enhancing clarity, filling the gaps, and removing the inconsistencies that are inherent to fragmented regulatory systems;
• foster an operation-centric, proportionate, as well as risk- and performance-based regulatory framework, considering important aspects such as privacy, personal data protection, security, and safety.