Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/1107 of 13 March 2024 supplementing Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 of the European Parliament and of the Council by laying down detailed rules for the continuing airworthiness of certified unmanned aircraft systems and their components, and on the approval of organisations and personnel involved in these tasks

This Regulation establishes common technical requirements and administrative procedures to ensure the continuing airworthiness of unmanned aircraft systems (‘UAS’), including any component for installation thereto, where the unmanned aircraft is, or will be, registered in a Member State, and is intended to be operated in the ‘specific’ category as defined in Article 5 of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/947 and a certificate of airworthiness or a restricted certificate of airworthiness has been or will be issued to the unmanned aircraft.

For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions apply: (1) ‘unmanned aircraft system’ means an unmanned aircraft, as defined in Article 3, point (30), of Regulation (EU) 2018/1139, and its control and monitoring unit; (2) ‘control and monitoring unit’ means the equipment to control unmanned aircraft remotely, as defined in Article 3, point (32), of Regulation (EU) 2018/1139; (3) ‘certifying staff’ means the personnel responsible for the certification of maintenance upon its completion; (4) ‘component’ means any engine, propeller or part of the unmanned aircraft, or any element of the control and monitoring unit; (5) ‘continuing airworthiness’ means all of the processes ensuring that, at any time in its operating life, the unmanned aircraft system complies with the applicable airworthiness requirements and is in a condition for safe operation; (6) ‘maintenance’ means any one or a combination of the following activities: overhaul, repair, inspection, replacement, modification or defect rectification of an unmanned aircraft system or component, with the exception of pre-flight inspection; (7) ‘organisation’ means a natural person, a legal person or part of a legal person, established at more than one location whether or not within the territory of the Member States; (8) ‘pre-flight inspection’ means the inspection carried out before flight to ensure that the unmanned aircraft is fit for the intended flight; (9) ‘principal place of business’ means the head office or the registered office of the undertaking from which the principal financial functions and the operational control of the activities referred to in this Regulation are exercised; (10) ‘critical maintenance task’ means a maintenance task that involves the assembly or any disturbance of a system or any component on an unmanned aircraft system, engine or propeller that, if an error occurred during its performance, could directly endanger the flight safety; (11) ‘control and monitoring unit installation’ means the process to integrate the control and monitoring unit’s elements in a physical environment that is eligible for that purpose according to a set of installation and testing instructions, such that the installed control and monitoring unit may be used to operate an unmanned aircraft.

1 The continuing airworthiness of UAS referred to in Article 1 and the components for installation thereon shall be ensured in accordance with Annex I (Part-ML.UAS) to this Regulation.

2 By way of derogation from paragraph 1, the continuing airworthiness of UAS referred to in Article 1, for which a permit to fly has been issued shall be ensured on the basis of specific continuing airworthiness arrangements defined in the approved flight conditions of the permit to fly issued in accordance with Subpart P of Annex I (Part 21) to Regulation (EU) No 748/2012.

An organisation that is involved in the continuing airworthiness of UAS referred to in Article 1 and of components for installation thereon, including their maintenance, shall comply with Annex II (Part-CAO.UAS) and obtain the related approval certificate from the competent authority specified in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/1109 .

Certifying staff shall be qualified in accordance with Annex II (Part-CAO.UAS).

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union. It shall apply from 1 May 2025. However, point CAO.UAS.102 of Annex II (Part-CAO.UAS) shall apply from 22 February 2026.