After the flight: incidents, accidents, reporting
The syllabus retains only two tasks after the flight, but a third obligation can arise: reporting. Many candidates believe recreational flying is exempt: the regime is lighter, it is not removed.
Key points
- Article 19(2) requires every UAS operator to report safety-related occurrences to the competent authority, in compliance with Regulation (EU) No 376/2014.
- GM1 Article 19(2) sets out the scope for aircraft requiring neither a certificate nor a declaration: the case of the ‘open’ category: Article 3(2) of Regulation 376/2014 then limits reporting to occurrences that resulted in serious or fatal injury to a person, or that involved aircraft other than unmanned aircraft.
- Declaring to your insurer is a separate step: it never replaces the report to the competent authority.
- The A1/A3 theoretical knowledge syllabus retains only two tasks after the flight: maintenance of the UAS and recording the details of the flight.
- Maintenance follows the manufacturer’s instructions. Mind the scope of the obligation: Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/945 imposes maintenance instructions on classes C1 to C4, but its Part 1, that of C0, requires none: it asks only for the characteristics, clear operational instructions, the operational limitations and the description of the risks.
- No article imposes a logbook in the ‘open’ category. Keeping a record of flights and of work done remains an expected practice for a remote pilot, and it is what provides proof after an occurrence.
- The operator develops operational procedures adapted to the type of operation and the risk involved (UAS.OPEN.050(1)); the remote pilot complies with them where they exist (UAS.OPEN.060(2)(f)). Where the operator is also the pilot, the manufacturer's instructions are enough.
The trap. Two confusions to avoid. Recreational flying does not escape reporting: it has a reduced version of it, triggered notably by a serious injury. And the recipient is the aviation authority, not the insurer nor the town hall.
Source
Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/947 (CELEX 02019R0947, consolidated on 01/05/2025), art. 19, paragraph 2, and Annex Part A, points UAS.OPEN.050(1) and UAS.OPEN.060(2)(f); GM1 Article 19(2) (ED Decision 2019/021/R) referring to Art. 3, paragraph 2, of Regulation (EU) No 376/2014 (CELEX 02014R0376, consolidated on 11/09/2018); AMC1 UAS.OPEN.020(4)(b) and UAS.OPEN.040(3), and AMC1 UAS.OPEN.050(1) (ED Decision 2022/002/R)