How Can Drone and Advanced Aviation Companies Achieve Regulatory Compliance from the UAS Design Stage?

How Can Drone and Advanced Aviation Companies Achieve Regulatory Compliance from the UAS Design Stage?

In a fast-evolving sector like the drone industry, regulatory compliance often takes a back seat as companies rush to deploy new technologies and gain a competitive edge.

However, as the so-called regulatory “transitional phase” of DR 2019/945 on Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) comes to an end with 2026, complying with existing and future regulations becomes a mandatory step for introducing any product in the European drone market, as well as an essential requirement to ensure the survival and success of all companies in the advanced aviation sector.

In 2025, Alejandro de San Félix Herrera Perdomo, Murzilli Consulting’s Senior Consultant for Product Safety, dove deep into the importance of this early integration of regulatory compliance into the design phase for placing any product on the European market in a webinar hosted by ENAC Alumni, as part of their Aerial Mobility Think Tank programme.

This article reflects the insights shared during the webinar, focusing on how current regulations affect drone manufacturers and operators today, and exploring how they may shape the future evolution of the advanced aviation landscape.

 

What Does the Current European Regulatory Framework Look Like for the AAM Industry?

There are two main regulations directly aimed at ensuring the safety of UAS and operations within the advanced air mobility (AAM) industry in Europe: Implementing Regulation 2019/947 and Delegated Regulation 2019/945. The latter is the one that relates to product assessment and certification with the focus on smaller and lighter drones, and with references to traditional aviation regulations for those systems operated in higher-risk operations that fall beyond this scope. The last regulatory developments have introduced the EU AI Act, which could also affect products that use AI as safety critical features.

The total absence of regulation on UAS prior to 2018, due largely to the lack of expert knowledge on the sector and its potential dangers, has led many manufacturers and developers to consider the progressive increase in current regulatory requirements as an obstacle on their race towards developing the pioneering technologies that will advance the future of aviation. This often results in misunderstandings and hindered cooperation between industry members, notified bodies and regulators.

Nevertheless, in the process of developing the new regulations, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is placing great importance on the perspectives and interests of all involved stakeholders, from operators and manufacturers to international associations such as the Joint Authorities for Rulemaking on Unmanned Systems (JARUS).

"Although EASA’s regulatory implementations may be slow, they are very steady, with no relevant changes or major drawbacks since their original establishment," explained Alejandro.

Additionally, if up until this point compliance with the above-mentioned DR 2019/945 was not mandatory, 2026 marks the beginning of a paradigm shift, meaning that any drone operated in the open category or standard scenarios (STS-01 and STS-02) will need to abide by said regulations and bear the corresponding Class Marking.

What Are the Risks of Disregarding UAS Compliance?

There are notable differences in the way companies face the regulatory environment they operate in, depending on their size.

While small start-ups are often more disruptive in terms of launching new technologies or proposing out-of-the-box use cases for UAS, they run the risk of minimising the importance of integrating compliance into the design process of their business models.

On the other hand, big companies, which usually have an aerospace background and previous experience with traditional aviation regulations, recognise the advantage of integrating compliance into the early stages of projects, and even have departments exclusively dedicated to ensuring regulatory requirements are met.

"Excluding regulatory compliance from their business model could be the cause of the disappearance of several drone start-ups in the next years,” added Alejandro.

Pushing back the introduction of regulatory compliance until the final stages of a project can lead to technical, commercial and legal setbacks, as well as delay the project timeline and generate additional costs that may threaten the company’s survival.

To this regard, most companies in the drone sector face a double challenge, as they must comply both with the European Commission’s general directives on product safety and with the specific regulations implemented by EASA.

 

What Is the Importance of CE and Class Marking?

Although the terms CE marking and Class marking are sometimes used interchangeably, it is essential to understand the difference between these labels.

The CE marking indicates that the manufacturer is compliant with all general applicable regulations, while the Class marking ensures compliance with one specific regulation, in this case the 2019/945 EASA Regulation. While CE Marking is mandatory for most of the products being sold in the European market, Class marking does not affect all unmanned aircraft systems. Drones in the Open Category, weighing 25 kilograms or less and intended for low-risk operations, require class marking. Drones intended to be operated in Standard Scenarios, STS-01 and STS-02 will also be affected by this regulation.

CE and C class markings are essential because consumers place significant trust in these labels, relying on the regulations behind them to ensure safety and compliance. This confidence allows them to purchase and operate drones without hesitation, knowing that established standards are in place to protect them.

The process of obtaining the CE Marking and the Class marking must always start with a detailed analysis of existing regulations, both general and drone-specific, and the subsequent identification of those requirements that are applicable to the product. The second step should be to draft a clear strategy that reflects how your organisation will attain regulatory compliance, whether through repeated flight testing, documentation or approval by the relevant notified body, when necessary, like in the case of UAS labelled C1 to C3 where it is mandatory.

What Are the Biggest Challenges for Drone and AAM Manufacturers?

The tightening of regulatory frameworks has introduced three major challenges for European drone manufacturers.

1. Increased Financial Burden
The first challenge lies in the additional economic pressure created by new compliance requirements, costs that were not generally accounted for in business plans prior to 2022. As discussed earlier, when regulatory compliance is not integrated into the business model from the outset, it can lead to significant unforeseen expenses. This is particularly detrimental to small and emerging companies with limited financial flexibility.

2. Misalignment Between Project Timelines and Certification Processes
A second challenge involves aligning development schedules with the timelines for operational authorisations and certifications. In seeking to attract investors or strategic partners, companies may be inclined to commit to ambitious delivery dates. However, these accelerated schedules often conflict with the lengthy and complex approval processes of civil aviation authorities, laboratories and regulators.

3. Managing Rapid Technological Evolution
Finally, the rapid pace of technological innovation poses an internal management challenge. As new features and upgrades are continuously incorporated into drone designs, maintaining oversight of all modifications becomes increasingly complex. Ensuring that every change remains compliant with current regulations helps prevent the need to restart certification procedures, saving both time and resources.

 

How Will These Regulations Shape the Future of the Drone and Advanced Aviation Sector?

Although the current intensification of the regulatory landscape disadvantages small businesses, it is estimated that in the near future, with the standardisation of regulations, the cost of certification will be reduced, while the regulatory knowledge of industry members will increase, until a balance is reached that ensures product safety without hindering any stakeholders.

In the meantime, gaining a deep understanding of our regulatory environment and engaging in active conversation with all relevant regulators can make the difference between a company’s disappearance and its uprising success.

If you need support from our expert drone consultants on any of our customised services, write to us, and we will be happy to answer any questions.

 

About Murzilli Consulting 

Murzilli Consulting is a digital aviation consultancy business unit operating within the M&K Global AG group. It was founded in 2020 by Lorenzo Murzilli and is based in Bern, Switzerland, with further branches in Germany, the United Kingdom, Hungary and Spain. The organisation is committed to helping clients succeed with their technology, regulation and compliance strategies. We do this by acting as a digital outsourced regulatory department and working with clients to support them in establishing a high-performing internal regulatory function. Our primary focus is on emerging technologies in the sectors of crewed and uncrewed aviation, advanced air mobility and U-space (including all derivative focuses).  

The Murzilli Consulting team offers governments and private enterprises alike the opportunity to establish a high-performing internal regulatory function capable of tackling emerging technologies. We can also develop and implement regulatory strategies and roadmaps as well as execute specific projects such as UAS and USSP certification, type certification, design verification, SORA approvals and CE marking, among other services. Our customer base is unrivalled in the consulting and services industry and reflects the trust that leading organisations have in our services.