Has anyone got a link to definitions of these categories?
I realise/think my P3 adv,
M2P and MM will be legacy drones, are they?
But my mind wants to know what the definitions of these categories are.
Thanks
All drones in the UK just now are 'legacy drones' as there are no C class drones manufactured yet.
Check this from UAV Academy:
Drone Certification – Product Standards
A key element of the Open category is that any drone sold for use within this category will have to comply with a set of product standards, similar to the ‘CE’ marking scheme. In order to achieve this standardisation, unmanned aircraft that are intended to be sold within the ‘EU market’ have been further subdivided into 5 ‘classes’.
Whilst it is essential to your understanding of the new regulation to be aware of the Classes, it is
unlikely that any certified drones will be available when the new regulations come into force. For this reason there are
‘Transitional’ arrangements which allow for non-certified ‘legacy’ drones to be flown in the Open sub-categories
A1 and
A2 for two years after the EU regulations come into force, After which time they will only be allowed to fly in
A3 (far from people) sub-category.
Class 0 – can be flown in all subcategories
Very small unmanned aircraft, including toys, that:
- are less than 250g maximum take-off mass
- have a maximum speed of 19m/s (approx. 42.5 mph)
- are unable to be flown more than 120m (400ft) from the controlling device
Class 1 – can be flown in all subcategories
- Are either less than 900g maximum take-off mass, or are made and perform in a way that if they collide with a human head, the energy transmitted will be less than 80 Joules
- have a maximum speed of 19m/s (approx. 42.5 mph)
- designed and constructed so as to minimise injury to people
The standards also cover other aspects such as noise limits, height limits and requirements for remote identification and geoawareness systems.
Class 2 – can be flown in subcategory A2 and A3
- Less than 4kg maximum take-off mass
- Designed and constructed so as to minimise injury to people
- Equipped with a low-speed mode’ which limits the maximum speed to 3m/s (approx. 6.7 mph) when selected by the remote pilot
The standards also cover other aspects such as noise limits (but different from C1), height limits and requirements for remote identification and geoawareness systems, plus additional requirements if it is to be used during tethered flight.
Class 3 – can be flown in subcategory A3
Drones that possess automatic control modes (such as found in typical multicopter ‘drones’) which are less than 25kg maximum take-off mass
The standards also cover other aspects covering height limits and requirements for remote identification and geoawareness systems. There are also additional requirements if it is to be used during tethered flight, but there is no specified noise limit (because the aircraft is intended to be flown ‘far from people’).
Class 4 – can be flown in subcategory A3
Drones that Unmanned aircraft that do not possess any automation, other than for basic flight stabilisation (and so are more representative of a ‘traditional’ model aircraft) which are less than 25kg maximum take-off mass
The standards also cover other aspects covering height limits and requirements for remote identification and geoawareness systems. There are also additional requirements if it is to be used during tethered flight, but there is no specified noise limit (because the aircraft is intended to be flown ‘far from people’).
