This publication is a Revision from November 2021 and incorporates the amendments introduced in the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 923/2012 by Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2021/666, as regards requirements for manned aviation operating in U-space airspace. Source: EASA
Regulation (EU) No 923/2012, amended by Regulation (EU) 2016/1185, and the Aviation Safety (Amendment) Regulations 2021 (SERA) is the transposition into law of ICAO Annex 2 (Rules of the Air) and parts of ICAO Annex 3 (Meteorology), Annex 10 (Communication Procedures), Annex 11 (Air Traffic Services) and Doc 4444 (PANS-ATM). Pilots, air traffic controllers, flight information service officers, aerodrome operators and anyone else involved in the operation of aircraft need to understand the rules.
‘’They apply to general air traffic operating into, within or out of the European Union; bearing the nationality and registration marks of a Member State of the Union and operating in any airspace to the extent that they do not conflict with the rules published by the country having jurisdiction over the territory overflown’’.
These rules divide the airspace into several classes, each one is defined in terms of the traffic volume allowed to fly in it, depending on the flight rules, aircraft equipage, pilot qualifications and the services rendered (for instance full air navigation services or just flight information to the pilot). The airspace classes cover the airspace from ground level. The Regulation includes a main body and an Annex named ‘’Rules of the Air’’ followed by five Appendices.
The Easy Access Rules for SERA, for easier understanding, are shown in a consolidated, easy-to-read format which includes advanced navigation features through links and bookmarks. Moreover, the different elements of the document have colours assigned as well as different fonts. The document will be regularly updated to include further changes.
It is important to mention that this is a relevant step reached in the development and deployment of the common airspace for manned and unmanned aircrafts. However, there is a lot of work to do in the following years to ensure safe operations and to create an appropriate social awareness.
