A new standardized practice published by ASTM International will help drone operators evaluate drones for risks, potentially leading to greater acceptance of their usage among civil aviation authorities. Entitled, "F3178, Practice for Operational Risk Assessment (ORA)", the standard defines how to prepare Operational Risk Assessments that are necessary for approvals related to airworthiness, design and operations.
"The world approaches drone operations from a risk-based method. This new standard allows people to understand and apply the best practices for identifying hazards, quantifying risk, and mitigating that risk," says ASTM International member Harrison Wolf, President of Wolf UAS.
The new standard deals specifically with how to evaluate drones of any size and will be most helpful to drone operators who want to use regulated airspace. Specifically, the standard will be used by applicants who are seeking waivers or approvals for higher risk environments than those allowed by current regulations.
The standard is being developed by ASTM International Committee on Unmanned Aircraft Systems (F38). For more information about ASTM International’s growing portfolio of standards development work with drones, click here.
The new F3178, Practice for Operational Risk Assessment (ORA) standard, is available for purchase from the ASTM Standards and Publications. ASTM welcomes any public comment in the process of any development of its standards.
