The Provincial Council of Jaén has awarded a grant to our ATLAS Flight Centre to improve the efficiency and safety of our facilities for carrying out flight campaigns using helicopter-type RPAS under the Specific Category, in accordance with operational authorisation and the SORA 2.5 methodology. The overall aim of this initiative is to comprehensively strengthen our centre’s technological, operational and regulatory capabilities for carrying out flight campaigns using helicopter-type UAV/RPAS drone platforms in the Specific Category.
The grant amounts to 30,000 euros and forms part of the “Call for Grant Applications for Technology Centres in the province of Jaén, to contribute to the competitiveness of the various economic sectors, within the framework of the Employment and Business Plan for the province of Jaén, 2026”. These grants are intended for initiatives that help to improve the competitiveness of key sectors in the province of Jaén, by promoting innovation, digitalisation, the opening up of new markets, or collaboration between technology centres and the business community, particularly the self-employed and SMEs.
ATLAS is currently working on the application process for an operational authorisation from the State Aviation Safety Agency (AESA) to carry out operations in the Specific Category for helicopter-type unmanned aerial systems. This procedure will be carried out in accordance with the current European regulatory framework, applying recognised risk analysis methodologies such as SORA, in order to ensure that the planned operations meet the highest standards of operational safety and reliability.
Obtaining this authorisation will enable a range of advanced operational scenarios – currently subject to administrative restrictions – to be implemented, thereby expanding the scope of our ATLAS Centre’s capabilities.
Once operational authorisation has been obtained, it will be integrated into CATEC’s LUC (Light UAS Certificate), thereby establishing a more robust and flexible operational framework. This integration will enable the operator to exercise a number of regulatory privileges, notably the ability to authorise certain operations without the need for external validation by the relevant aviation authority. This will eliminate long waiting times for national and international operators wishing to fly their RPAS helicopters within the segregated airspace at our centre.
This project will therefore help to position the ATLAS Centre at the forefront of operational safety, technical excellence and regulatory compliance, aligning its capabilities with the most demanding and up-to-date standards at European level.
