Hello members,
Most of the members here have probably gone through the set of rules that DGCA has approved and is going to be effective from 1st December'18. They have classified the RPAS (Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems, which by the definition includes the Planes & Helis too) in to several categories, out of which most people will be interested in
1. Nano category (Lighter than 250g)
2. Micro Category (Weighing between 250g and 2000g)
For more than 2Kg builds, we need a separate permit and that's another level of difficulty, so I want to discuss about these two here.
1. Nano: These don't need and permit provided they are flown below 50ft.
2. Micro: These RPAS needs a specific UIN for each model, and an intimation to the local police with an approval from the Digital Sky platform to fly. Max height attainable is 200ft.
Since, the system is going to be online from 1st December, most of us are eagerly waiting for that to jump into the application process.
However, in order to issue UIN, several documents will be needed. Like
a. Contact details of owner, PAN card - No problem
b. Purpose & base of operation - Again not a problem
c. Specification of RPAS - No problem
d. Weight of compatible payload and maximum load carrying capacity of the RPA - No problem
e. RPA Flight Manual/ Manufacturer’s Operating Manual (as applicable) - No problem for the off the shelf models.
f. Manufacturer’s maintenance guidelines for RPA (as applicable). - no problem for the off the shelf models.
g.
Manufacturer’s Certificate of Compliance for NPNT - Big issue
h.
Equipment Type Approval from WPC wing of DoT - Another big problem
i. Security Clearance - no problem, as two ID proofs will suffice.
Regarding NPNT: No craft at present has that. DJI has No Fly Zones, but that is geo restricted, not restricted from the Govt. I don't know if the Red and Yellow Zones in the DJI Geo map change in accordance with the Govt.
Regarding ETA: I don't have any idea on how to procure one. Only RCB6i details page of RCBazaar says that radio is WPC Compliant. No other radio I have seen have such details.
Racing quads wont face any problem as they generally fly within a track they setup and not outside. The problem will be faced by the aerial Photographers. Lets not even talk about the scratch builds.
Does any person here know any DJI distributor who is trying to get things sorted? By procuring ETA and making things NPNT compliant?