Claimed by the European Commission as the world’s most advanced safety framework for drones to operate in a country, the new European Drone Strategy 2.0 was recently announced, and it promises to allow drone-related innovations on the continent to take flight.
Drones are no new additions to European skies, and have flown (according to the European Commission, hundreds of thousands of hours to survey infrastructure, monitor oil spills, and to sample soil sizes. Drones are also used to make medical air deliveries, for agriculture purposes and, of course, for warfare. Drones have been used in the European defense sector for 30 years, although the European Commission does state that the “European military drone capabilities remain less mature than in other regions of the world”.
The Commission now plans to extend the potential of local drones. For this to happen, it has addressed “technical critical building blocks,” including artificial intelligence, robotics, semiconductors, EU space services and mobile telecommunications.
Here’s what else you need-to-know about the European drone strategy, its key advantages, and possible challenges.
What is the European Drone Strategy 2.0?
Officially titled A Drone Strategy 2.0 for a Smart and Sustainable Unmanned Aircraft Eco-System in Europe, this new strategy is set against the objective Green Deal to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. Furthermore, this strategy is part of the Commission’s goal to contribute to the creation of safe and secure services and markets. In a nutshell, the strategy explains the growth potential of drones, and how it plans to unleash this potential.
According to Commissioner for Transport Adina Vălean, the arrival of new generation, electrically powered aircrafts capable of operating in an urban and regional environment, calls for conditions that meet both the needs of the operators’ commercial needs, and the citizens’ expectations regarding privacy and security. In addition, Vălean stated that safe sky operations must also be maintained.
“[This new strategy] not only widens Europe’s capacity to pursue large-scale commercial drone operations but also offers new opportunities, in particular to small and medium-sized enterprises,” Vălean said. “With the right framework in place, the drone services market in Europe could be worth €14.5 billion, and create 145,000 jobs, by 2030.”
Noise, safety and privacy concerns addressed
Before kicking off with their planned innovations for drones, the Commission stated the need to address social concerns surrounding residents. It noted the need for national, regional and local municipalities to ensure that drone services align with these needs.