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At Volocopter, we are pioneering Urban Air Mobility (UAM) through cutting-edge innovation – and one of the keys to commercial success is a robust regulatory framework. The European Commission (“Commission") and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) have done groundbreaking work in this regard. The latest example is the adoption of a regulatory package introducing the rules for the launch of crewed IAM (Innovative Air Mobility) operations, defined by EASA as the “safe, secure, and sustainable air mobility of passenger and cargo enabled by new-generation technologies integrated into a multimodal transportation system” and UAM as a subset.
The package lays requirements across Air Operations (Air Ops) – that includes a new annex called Part IAM covering crewed VTOL operations – and amendments to Flight Crew Licensing (FCL) regulation among others.
The adoption of the regulatory package marks the end of more than three years of consultative rulemaking process led by EASA. In this process, industry and other stakeholders – including Volocopter – were consulted both as part of a public consultation process and through expert groups established by EASA. From the start, Volocopter has worked with EASA to provide an industry perspective that is anchored on a performance-based and design-agnostic approach.
Such efforts put Europe ahead in a globally developing IAM and UAM industry. While this adoption marks the end of the rulemaking process, the transition period to apply the regulatory package across the EASA Member States will take another 12 months.
Before we highlight some of the regulatory innovations introduced by EASA through the abovementioned regulatory package, let us briefly illustrate how EASA’s rulemaking process works.
EASA’s rulemaking process
EASA follows a series of steps to develop regulations under its Rulemaking Procedure. As illustrated above, everything starts with EASA initiating the Terms of Reference (ToR) for the given rulemaking task, followed by drafting of the regulatory material. Here, the rulemaking process can be supported through engagement of affected parties and external experts. Once the proposed draft regulatory material is finalized, EASA consults the public in the form of Notices of Proposed Amendments (NPAs) to collect views from interested stakeholders. For instance, the NPA associated with the regulatory package for the launch of UAM crewed VTOL operations (NPA 2022-06) was published by EASA in June 2022, followed by a 3-month period for public consultation.
Once the consultation period is over, after resolving the received comments, EASA issues the final version of the regulation, also referred to as Opinions, to the Commission. In the case of this regulatory package, the Opinion 03/2023 was issued in August 2023. Once the abovementioned steps are completed, the Commission adopts the final regulation which is published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU). The regulation becomes applicable to the Member States only after a defined transition period where they prepare for implementation, which is 12 months in the case of this regulatory package.
Road to the Regulatory Package
Aircraft like our VoloCity are referred to as Vertical Take-off and Landing (VTOL) capable aircraft. These aircraft are different from conventional rotorcraft like helicopters due to the use of distributed propulsion, and from fixed-wing aircraft due to their VTOL capability. Because of these differences, regulatory bodies and VTOL companies like Volocopter identified the need to develop new or modify existing regulations to enable VTOL aircraft operations. As such, in 2019, in the certification domain, EASA proposed the airworthiness criteria for VTOL aircraft (SC-VTOL). However, the regulations to operate VTOL aircraft were still lacking – and the newly adopted regulatory package fills this gap.
So, what regulatory challenges emerged from the differences between VTOLs and traditional aircraft – and what solutions has EASA proposed through the regulatory package to address them?
1. New VTOL designs require new definitions
Some VTOL aircraft designs are new, like our multirotor VoloCity. This flagged the need for a new definition of ‘VTOL’. Given the various possible configurations of such aircraft, it was important to keep the definition agnostic to all aircraft designs. At the same time, VTOLs had to be distinguished from the existing aircraft categories, such as airplanes or rotorcrafts. To address this, the following definition of VTOLs was incorporated into EASA’s operational framework:
“VTOL-capable aircraft” (VCA) means a power-driven, heavier-than-air aircraft other than aeroplane or rotorcraft, capable of performing vertical takeoff and landing by means of lift and thrust units used to provide lift during the take-off and landing.” (published in the OJEU)
The definition is based on VTOLs’ two main characteristics: vertical take-off and landing capability and distributed propulsion. While both VTOL and rotorcraft use propulsion to generate lift, VTOLs use more than two propulsion units. To ensure there are no overlaps between the two, the definition of rotorcraft was amended to cover only up to two rotors to generate lift.
2. Need for a performance-based approach
Historically, aviation regulations have been written in a prescriptive manner, specifying exactly what needs to be done and how to do it. However, this approach has proven to be incompatible with the fast pace of technological development.
That is why, be it breakthroughs in electronics or flight controls, the industry has pushed regulators to adopt a performance-based approach to accommodate technological changes. A performance-based approach embodies flexibility while ensuring that the desired safety standards are met. This is especially crucial for VTOLs, given substantial innovations they bring, e.g., in propulsion systems, flight controls or lift/thrust architecture. (Read here how we are pushing technological boundaries at Volocopter.)
In line with industry needs, EASA has incorporated many performance-based elements into Part IAM. One example is the concept of final energy reserves. In conventional fuel-based systems, the final reserve concept is prescriptive, meaning every aircraft must have a final reserve fuel sufficient to fly for a certain amount of time. For VTOLs, as per Part IAM, EASA proposes a performance-based approach to final reserve. According to this, each operator can plan their final reserve based on the aircraft capabilities and mission profile, which is then approved by the regulatory authority.
3. Flying over congested urban areas means new operational challenges
Vertiports are key to enabling VTOL operations. EASA defines vertiports as “an area of land, water, or structure used or intended to be used for the landing and take-off of VTOL aircraft.” While take-off and landing are a regular part of any flight, diversion is a situation where the pilot decides to land the aircraft at a different landing location than initially planned.
To ensure operational safety for initial VTOL operations, a new concept of diversion location was considered by EASA. Why? As highlighted by Volocopter during the rulemaking process, urban areas currently do not have established network of vertiports – and building and certifying such networks requires a lengthy process.
Like vertiports, diversion locations must meet defined safety criteria for VTOL operators to use, and they need to be appropriately selected and assessed prior to starting the operations. However, the diversion location approval process is quicker compared to vertiports which provides VTOL operators the confidence in cases where diversion is required.
4. Shortage of pilots to fly VTOLs
Another important element of the operational ecosystem was to establish a clear regulatory path towards VTOL pilots’ training and licensing. While a long-term solution would be to create a new pilot license for this new category of aircraft, a quick solution was necessary to enable the training of an initial batch of VTOL pilots. Since VTOLs share similarities with both airplanes and helicopters but also have their unique characteristics, the solution supported by the industry, including Volocopter, was to combine the existing licensing schemes with specific VTOL training.
As a result, the Flight Crew Licensing (FCL) Regulation was amended to enable airplane or helicopter pilots to obtain type rating for VTOLs endorsed on their current licenses. Type rating is a certificate granted to pilots that allows them to fly a specific aircraft. EASA decided that the training elements to be covered in the type rating are determined by the manufacturer – which allows to address the uniqueness of each VTOL design and, at the same time, leverages on the existing pool of appropriately qualified, and experienced pilots.
Industry Relevance
A clear and predictable regulatory path is essential to enable long-term commercial success in aviation, especially for emerging markets like IAM and UAM. The changes brought by this regulatory package regarding Air OPS and FCL will help the industry unlock initial operations with crewed VTOL aircraft. The changes will be implemented in EASA Member States by June 2025, and only then can VTOL operators directly use them. However, even before they are fully applied, operators can refer to the published text of the Part IAM and amendments to FCL regulation – using it as a guide to work out regulatory solutions with EASA and Member State authorities on a case-by-case basis.
This regulatory package only marks the beginning of a long journey ahead. For example, Part IAM currently only covers Visual Flight Rules (VFR) day operations – meaning VTOL pilots will operate the aircraft in clear weather conditions – the path that our VoloCity flights will initially start with. More advanced operations with VTOLs like VFR night and Instrumental Flight Rules (IFR) operations (for example, adverse weather conditions) are expected to be taken up by EASA as the next rulemaking step, based on operational experience gained through the initial operations and the needs of the industry. In the case of FCL, a long-term solution needs to be created so that new pilots can obtain a VTOL license without holding any prior certifications.
Paving the Way for Electric Aviation
The adoption of the regulatory package to mobilize IAM by the Commission is a positive step for all players in the industry. Most importantly, EASA leading the consultative rulemaking process amidst the challenges of a novel VTOL technology, spotlights Europe’s commitment to spearheading the integration of VTOL aircraft on a global scale.
With over a decade of development experience, Volocopter cherishes the importance of such a milestone for the commercialization of our aircraft to uplift quality of life. As pioneers of electric VTOLs, Volocopter is committed to support EASA, the Commission, and other regulatory bodies worldwide in future rulemaking processes as advisors across different branches of aviation expertise.