EU seeks to register all drones, drone operators

By Ilker Girit

ISTANBUL

The European Union is intending to register all civilian drones and their operators as part of first-ever EU-wide rules.

The European Parliament said negotiators agreed Thursday that EU countries would require operators of drones to be registered.

These drones "will also need to be individually marked to be easily identified," a statement read.

The provisional deal would also see the design and manufacture of drones “comply with EU basic requirements on safety, security and personal data protection".

Currently, manufacturers and operators are subject to different requirements under the jurisdiction of national authorities.

EU officials believe that establishing "a uniform level of safety across the EU and greater clarity to drone manufacturers and operators" would help in boosting the sector.

The EU Commission was tasked to define "more specific requirements, for instance on what kind of drones should be equipped with features such as altitude limits, maximum operating distance, collision avoidance, flight stabilization and automated landing".

"These drones will also need to be individually marked to be easily identified," the statement added.

Thursday’s deal now needs to be approved by the European Council and the European Parliament as a whole before coming into force.