Colm Brophy (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)

I thank Deputy Currie for raising this matter which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Transport. From the aviation safety perspective, the regulation of the recreational and commercial use of drones, or unmanned aircraft systems as they are technically known, is provided for under European Union regulations that are directly applicable to Ireland. Two drone-specific EU regulations ensure that drone operations across Europe are safe and secure. In that context, Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/945 and the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/947 set out the common rules for the regulation of drones and drone operators, including training, licensing and registration. Regulation 2019/947 sets out the operational rules that apply to professional drone operators and those flying drones for leisure. Regulation 2019/945 sets the common EU-wide technical requirements for drones, which are the features and capabilities that drones must have in order to be flown safely. This regulation also seeks to foster investment and innovation in this sector through a harmonised framework across the European Union. The aim of the EU drone regulations is to achieve the same level of safety for drone operations as manned aviation.

The Irish Aviation Authority, the civil aviation regulator, oversees the implementation of the EU drone regulations and standards. The drone regulations are operation centric and focus on the risk of drone operations, so regulation is lighter on low-risk operations and more demanding on higher risk operations. Under the EU regulatory regime, drone operations are classified into three broad categories - open, specific and certified - with different regulatory considerations applied across each category. Commercial drone operations may fall into any one of these categories depending on the risk associated with the operation. Low-risk commercial drone operations, such as aerial photography, may fall in the open category where regulation and oversight of operations are lighter. Other commercial drone operations, including drone delivery operations, are more closely regulated. These types of commercial drone operations may fall into the medium-risk specific category, which may require specific authorisation by the IAA. This type of authorisation is recognised in all EU member states. To obtain operational authorisation, an operator must provide a comprehensive safety portfolio which includes assessing and addressing both ground and air risks with appropriate mitigations. These might include, for example, co-ordination with air traffic control and fitting the drone with a parachute and flight termination system.

At national level, SI 24/2023, Irish Aviation Authority (Unmanned Aircraft Systems (Drones)) Order 2023, which replaced an earlier drones order, came into force on 2 February 2023. It states the investigative and enforcement powers of the IAA and provides for arrangements between An Garda Síochána and the IAA in relation to enforcement of EU drone regulations. It also includes a section on privacy rights, which draws the attention of drone operators to the need to prepare a data protection impact assessment where required, in accordance with the EU general data protection regulation. In addition to complying with EU drone regulations, drone operators must also comply with national laws, including environmental, planning and, as mentioned, privacy laws.

In addition to the two EU drone regulations to which I referred, there is also a European regulatory framework, comprising Regulations (EU) 2021/664, 2021/665 and 2021/666, which allows for the safe development of the drone services market, including drone delivery and the integration of drones into airspace. The U-space regulation - Regulation (EU) 2021/664) - emerged to support commercial operations with drones, especially those entailing greater complexity and automation, to provide for the safe integration of a number of drone flights in a volume of airspace. Essentially, U-space is an area of airspace where drone operations may only occur with the support of U-space services. At a minimum, these must include network identification, traffic management, flight authorisation and geo-awareness. U-space full services are not envisaged to happen until 2030. The establishment of U-space in high-density drone use areas may mitigate some concerns related to privacy and security.

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