Tag: EASA

Aircraft Manufacturers Prepare for Uncrewed Future

Politico reports that every commercial flight “has two pilots at the controls – but some planemakers are now designing cockpits that need fewer pilots, or someday even none.” So far, their airline customers “have been quiet on the issue, but pilots’ unions across the globe are getting louder, saying any fewer than two pilots is dangerous.” The idea “is most active in Europe, where French manufacturers Airbus and Dassault are pushing for regulators to allow passenger planes to operate with only one pilot in the cockpit for the majority of a long-haul flight.” European Cockpit Association President and KLM Captain Otjan de Bruijn said, “It’s a commercially-driven initiative with enormous risks for passengers, for pilots, and for cabin crew.” At present, this is theoretical, but manufacturers “are actively developing and testing a host of autonomous flight projects, including for commercial uses.” And EASA, the European Union’s aviation regulator, “is considering a concept that would have two pilots in the cockpit only for take-off and landing.” For the rest of the flight, the second pilot “would rest outside the cockpit, swapping shifts mid-way through a long-haul flight.” EASA is “expected to sign off on this by 2027.” A FAA official “said the agency is not considering any of the proposals that EASA is weighing.”
Full Story (Politico)

EASA Publishes World’s First Noise Certification Standards for EVOTLs

Aviation International News reports that EASA “has published what it claims are the world’s first proposed noise certification standards for eVTOLs.” The guidelines are “known as the Environmental Protection Technical Specifications (EPTS), the proposed specification would be applicable to eVTOLs powered by multiple vertical, non-tilting, evenly distributed rotors.” EASA says that the rules are intended to fill a gap in aerospace regulations. The agency used noise certification standards for heavy helicopters as a starting point while it “collects more noise data from specific eVTOL designs through certification projects.”
Full Story (Aviation International News)

EASA Publishes Noise Standards for EVOTLs

Aviation International News reports that EASA “has published what it claims are the world’s first proposed noise certification standards for eVTOLs.” The proposals, known as the Environmental Protection Technical Specifications (EPTS), “are applicable to eVTOL vehicles powered by multiple vertical, non-tilting, evenly distributed rotors.” EASA says that the proposed specifications “are intended to fill a regulatory gap and use the internationally harmonized noise certification standards for heavy helicopters” as a starting point while it “collects more noise data from specific eVTOL designs through certification projects.” In addition, a hover noise level “has been developed to aid in the assessment of flight operations in the vicinity of vertiports.”
Full Story (Aviation International News)

EASA Submits EVTOL Operating Regulations

Aviation Week reports that the European Union Aviation Safety Agency’s (EASA) “proposed rules for the operation of vertical-takeoff-and-landing (VTOL) aircraft, including air taxis, emphasize the continuing differences in approach by Europe and the U.S. to regulating the emerging industry.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)

EASA Release Initial Certification Requirements for Electric, Hybrid Propulsion Systems

FlightGlobal reports that the European Union Aviation Safety Agency has “drawn up an initial set of certification requirements for electric or hybrid propulsion systems for future aircraft types.” The special condition “has been shaped from an initial proposal in January last year, following extensive comments from multiple aerospace companies including Airbus, The Boeing Company, Embraer, Rolls-Royce, Safran and other organisations specialising in electric propulsion.” EASA said, “It is considered challenging at this stage to provide a generic set of requirements for [such propulsion systems] that could encompass all possibilities.” For “large aircraft, covered by CS-25 certification standards, the special condition must be complemented with appropriate emissions requirements which are ‘yet to be defined’ for electric propulsion, says EASA.” The agency “also points out that any design including use of hydrogen – whether to feed fuel cells or combustion engines – is also outside of the scope.”
Full Story (FlightGlobal)

EASA Chief: 737 MAX “Likely” to Receive Approval to Fly “In January”

Reuters reported that the European Union Aviation Safety Agency “is set to lift its flight ban on the Boeing 737 MAX passenger jetliner in January after U.S. regulators last week ended a 20-month grounding triggered by two fatal crashes.” On Saturday, EASA Executive Director Patrick Ky said, “We wanted to carry out a totally independent analysis of the safety of this aircraft, so we performed our own checks and flight tests. All these studies tell us that the 737 MAX can return to service. We have started to put in place all the measures.” Ky continued, “It is likely that in our case we will adopt the decisions, allowing it to return to service, some time in January.” EASA will likely publish a draft “directive proposing to end the grounding in Europe…next week, followed by a 30-day comment period.”
Full Story (Reuters)