Uncrewed/Remotely Piloted Air Systems

Categorisation and Certification

As uncrewed systems, failure of a RPAS does not carry inherent risk to life for aircrew. However, the risk to other aircraft and 3rd parties on the ground must be considered and mitigated by Categorisation and Certification.

Categorisation is determined by where and how the RPAS will be operated, and the level of categorisation determines the level of rigour applied to airworthiness certification. Lower risk activities, away from people and from small RPAS, will have relatively light touch airworthiness requirements for the RPAS, whereas higher risk operations over people, carrying cargo or weapons or the operation of large RPAS could require the application of equivalent airworthiness standards as crewed aircraft.

We have experience in supporting RPAS suppliers and MoD teams in determining the level of Categorisation and Certification needed based on the intended use. This includes an assessment of alternative standards that may have been used in Commercial Off the Shelf (COTS) equipment for equivalence to specified standards.

Specific Operation Risk Assessment (SORA)

The Joint Authorities for Rulemaking on Unmanned Systems (JARUS) has developed the SORA method for assessing the risk involved in operating RPAS in the Specific Category. It recognises that most mitigation for operating a RPAS will be derived from how it is operated, rather than reliance on the RPAS meeting specific airworthiness standards.

Where the operating location and the activity can be clearly identified and bounded, SORA provides a toolkit that allows the risk level of the activity to be assessed and gives guidance on the Operational Safety Objectives (OSO) that should be implemented to mitigate these risks down to an acceptable level that is equivalent to conventional aircraft. SORA is accepted by the MAA as an appropriate method for presenting an RPAS Safety Case.

Safeguard Engineering have experience in applying SORA and providing RPAS suppliers with an assessment of compliance requirements.

Operation Manuals

Although Military Aviation Authority (MAA) and Civilian Aviation Authority (CAA) regulations for the use of RPAS have differences, they both require Operating Safety Cases supported by processes and assurance, which can be presented as an Operation Manual.

Under SORA, many of the Operational Safety Objectives are satisfied by having a robust Operations Manual. For Civil RPAS operations, the CAA regulations (CAP 722) for authorisation of an Operating Organisation are achieved by presenting evidence in the Operations Manual, supported by a compliant Safety Management System following CAP795.

Safeguard Engineering can assist our clients in developing and presenting suitable policies and processes as an Operations Manual to support authorisation and approvals. We can also audit and assess your systems and operations manual against MAA or CAA requirements.

Ship Air Integration

The Royal Navy has operated RPAS from ships for several years and is continuously innovative in its ambitions to develop future capability. To do so safely requires an understanding of ship aviation arrangements and operating procedures, particularly if it is intended to operate Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) under an Air Traffic Safety Service such as Maritime Positive Control.

From work with the Royal Navy, DE&S and RPAS suppliers, we are experienced in the safety assessment of the ship/RPAS interface and advising on appropriate mitigations. This includes hazard identification of the interaction of the RPAS and ship through all phases of operation from storage, handling, preparation for flight, operations and recovery. We can advise on additional aviation arrangements that may be needed in the ship for safe and effective command and control of RPAS operations and potential requirements for additional equipment to be integrated into the RPAS.