eFlight Journal 02-2020

e Aviation Talk
Organizers and participants of the new European Rotors gave a look into the planning for November.
enable innovation and we think that with a new open approach
we can do this better.”
The agency created a new VTOL department which is responsible
for the certification of all VTOL aircraft including
helicopters and drones with a maximal take-off weight
of above 450 Kg.
Thenew VTOL and innovation projects were created to
enable manned and unmanned VTOL operations.
Stepped approach
SC-VTOL FOR BETTER FLEXIBILITYS
Solar explains: “We looked at all options. Finally we decided
to go for a complete new rule set in the SC-VTOL
which was out for public consultation in July 2019 and
is now on the EASA website in its final version. This approach
is necessary as the agency is facing multiple different
configurations like Multirotor, vector thrust, fully
electric Hybrid (with conventional fuel and fuel cell driven)
and mixtures of these parameters”. The beginning
scope for the sc-VTOL is: heavier-than-air, a person carrying
in the small category. With multiple Lift-Thrust Units,
“And when we say multiple,” per David Solar,” multiple
means in this case more than two to have a clear separation
with the conventional Rotorcraft (helicopter and gyrocopter)
and the new VTOL”.
Instead of descriptive certification rules the European
Agency put out suggestions for a set of performance
based rules, which only defines the level of safety and
the operation requirements. Then the stakeholders define
together with standardization organizations like
ASTM EUROCAE and SAE the detailed Consensus Standards,
followed that these Means of Compliance (MOC)
are suggested by the agency. These are detailed definitions
in which the Agency defines how the applicant
company who wants to certify an aircraft or a propulsion
system can prove that it fits under the defined conditions
like the SC VTOL.
The first MOC for the SC-VTOL was published in the beginning
of June – “This first priority MOC are about Flightloads,
structure handling qualities, bird strike, energy
storage, emergency landing, crash resistance, fly by wire
design, lightning strike. This first items where requested
by industry”explained Solar.
ADAC is testing: having also multicopters - like the Volocopter - in its
EMS (Emergency Medical Service) would enable new services.
2 / 2020
e Flight Journal
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