Legal Aspects of Air Transport Safety and the Use of Drones

Abstract

Over the past few years, interest in the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (commonly referred to as drones) has increased. Uncontrolled drone flights poses a threat to air navigation, including air transport. The aim of this article is to identify potential sources of this threat, together with the identification of Polish legal regulations that respond to them. Conclusions will be based on proposals de lege ferenda, i.e., related to the postulated change of legal regulations, in order to limit the risk of incidents. The object of the article is subordinate to its structure, consisting of five parts. In the first part, the concept of unmanned aerial vehicles used by the Polish legislature will be defined, which is necessary because of the inaccuracies surrounding it. The second part will present ways to use drones for civilian purposes. The next part of the article will describe the cases of accident and aerial incidents involving drones. The fourth part focuses on the indication of Polish legal regulations related to the exploitation of drones. The article closes with concise conclusions.

Exploring the Challenges Posed by Regulations for the Use of Drones in Agriculture in the African Context

“…Overcoming the obstacle of restrictions for the safe use of airspace is what drone manufacturers must ensure. Security is the overarching goal of EU aviation policy and the European Commission clearly pointed out that the use of drones should be based on the principle of zero safety concessions [7]. To ensure that drones can fully be integrated into the airspace without restrictions, manufacturers must consider and tackle factors which can result in the inability to control the drone in mid-air.…”

“…To ensure that drones can fully be integrated into the airspace without restrictions, manufacturers must consider and tackle factors which can result in the inability to control the drone in mid-air. Users, on the other hand, must also consider the workload of drones during use in spraying or fertilizer contexts, as well as the handling of consignments [7]. Ref.…”

“…Ref. [7] further stressed the fact that drone operations vary widely throughout the world, but the drone regulations of the US and Europe have been blamed for discouraging the development of a commercial drone market suitable to support scientific research at the scale of small agencies.…”

“…According to [6], UAVs are new airspace objects that pose a potential risk to other users of the airspace and to businesses and individuals on the ground. As a result, a growing number of countries are establishing regulations in order to minimize safety and privacy risks that UAVs pose to humans and their property [7].…”

Developing a policy framework for adoption and management of drones for agriculture in Africa

“…UAVs are new airspace objects that pose a potential risk to other users of the airspace and third parties on the ground (Stöcker et al 2017). Therefore, a growing number of countries are therefore establishing regulations to minimise the risk as drone flights not controlled pose a threat to air navigation and transport (Tobór, Barcik, and Czech 2017). In keeping citizens' safety and privacy rights secured, regulatory regimes are necessary for realising the full potential of drones (Greenwood 2016).…”