Project ALBATROS, funded by Horizon Europe through CINEA and coordinated by NLR has inter alia explored possibilities for using drones (UAS) for emergencies at aerodromes.

But ‘drones in the box’ may also serve the needs of other industry segments for routine surveillance or to respond to any events. These industry segments include but are not limited to rail, landslide control, roads/bridges, power lines, rivers, plants and facilities.

To employ drones in the box in Beyond Visual Line-of-Sight (BVLOS), three logical phases are envisaged:

1. System definition, procurement, implementation and approval.
2. Setting up operations, obtaining approvals for them and then executing operations, possibly in coordination among various stakeholders.
3. Governing the flight of the drone and acquiring data from its sensors, which is covered by other UAS courses at JAA-TO.

This course UAS-EMG-SYS&OPS, covers items 1) (SYS) and 2) (OPS) and therefore it is not addressed to remote pilots.

The systems may be defined, procured, implemented and brought to regulatory approval by several stakeholders, including the aerodrome operator, a utility company, a UAS company contracted for the purpose, Rescue and Fire Fighting Services (RFFS) or others.

Possible training needs for defining which systems to procure and organise subsequent operations include:

• knowing and applying the processes for initial and continuing airworthiness in the specific category of UAS operations
• identifying which authorities and other legal actors may be involved
• differentiate drones in the box from vertiports
• taxonomy of automation and autonomy and general knowledge on the rules for autonomous operations in the specific category
• knowing who and which processes need to be followed to properly deploy and take advantage of drones in the box and monitoring the outcome of the mission
• knowing the task not only of the Remote Pilot (RP), but also of the Fleet Manager (as defined in ISO 21384-3) and competency requirements of such Fleet Manager (ISO 23665)
• practical skill to set destination and location to be reached
• familiarity with the emergency management plan of the airport and respective role and responsibilities of involved actors, including ATS and UAS operator
• Role of the Fire Brigade and support to their needs

The Training Course consists of 15 Lectures covering:

1. Course introduction and objectives
2. Regulatory framework and key constraints for organising UAS operations
3. Processes to obtain authorisation for operations in the specific category: STS, PDRA, operational authorisation
4. Autonomous drone operations
5. Select drone to respond to emergencies
6. Solutions based on ‘drone in the box’ and difference between docking station and vertiport
7. Beyond Visual Line-of-Sight (BVLOS) operations: the 10 steps of the Specific Operation Risk Assessment (SORA) methodology v2.5 and
8. SORA approach to ground risk
9. SORA v2.5: Strategic and tactical mitigations for the air risk
10. Operation planning and operational control
11. Training and qualification of remote pilots for responding to emergencies
12. Training and qualification of Fleet Managers (FM)
13. Procedures to restrict drone operations in the presence of adverse external factors and difference between OM and Flight Manual
14. UAS Traffic Management (UTM) and U-space
15. Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the context of UAS operations

At the end of the course participants should be able to:

• Explain the roles of different stakeholders for managing emergencies including but not limited to aerodromes and for managing drone operations, based on the applicable regulatory and standardisation framework
• Appreciate the relationship between emergency response plans and the possible use of drones
• Explain the difference between docking system and vertiport
• Explain the role and the competency requirements for the Fleet Manager (FM)

• UAS inspectors and other CAA personnel involved in oversight of UAS operations in the specific category
• Aerodrome and ATS personnel potentially involved in emergency response
• Professionals of other industry segments (e.g. rail, landslide control, roads/bridges, power lines, rivers, plants and facilities) which could benefit from application of ‘drones in the box’ solutions
• UTM/U-space service providers which accommodate emergency flights with priority
• UAS manufacturers, importers, vendors and operators
• Middle managers of Rescue and Firefighting Services (RFFS) or other civil protection entities