Article 8 Network identification service

GENERAL

(a)The network identification service provides the registration number of a UAS operator, the serial number of an unmanned aircraft, and live flight data of the UAS. It enables the sharing of information with any of the authorised users listed in Article 8(4) of Regulation (EU) 2021/664. Authorised users will be made aware of the geographical position, route course and emergency status, flight level, and type of the UAS, among other data elements. Based on the information provided by the UAS operators, USSPs share and consolidate UAS flight data among themselves and can, therefore, support traffic information when needed.

(b)The network identification service complements the original intent of the direct and network remote identification systems referred to in Regulation (EU) 2019/945. Whereas the remote identification established in Regulation (EU) 2019/945 supports the authorities in aspects related to security and privacy, the network identification service also supports operational needs and the traceability of unmanned aircraft during flight. The responsibility for the provision of the remote identification service lies with different entities. Regulation (EU) 2019/945 lays down the requirements for the design and manufacture of unmanned aircraft systems whereas Regulation (EU) 2021/664 defines the services provided by USSPs.

(c)Detailed and accurate information about the latency necessary for the proper functioning of the traffic information service may be assessed and defined during the U-space airspace risk assessment.

PROVISION OF AGGREGATED UAS REMOTE IDENTIFICATION USSPs should provide the UAS network remote identification in the geographic proximity of UAS operations that are supported by the provision of their services. USSPs should exchange network remote identification data with all the service providers that share the same U-space airspace. The resulting aggregated data should cover all available network remote identification data in the U-space airspace concerned.

CONTINUOUS PROCESSING USSPs should demonstrate a response time for distributing data received from the UAS, or from other service providers, which is smaller than the latency necessary for the proper functioning of the traffic information service, for at least 99 % of the time.

DURATION OF THE FLIGHT The network identification service should:

(a)be available throughout the duration of the flight, starting as soon as the flight authorisation is activated;

(b)not be required when the operator ceases the flight, independently of the time limit approved in the flight authorisation.

DATA EXCHANGE INTERFACE USSPs should use the interface defined in Annex 4 to ASTM F3411-22A ‘Standard Specification for Remote ID and Tracking’.

GEOGRAPHIC PROXIMITY Member States may support the definition of ‘geographic proximity’ by setting a value as part of the performance requirements established for each U-space airspace. Alternatively, the value provided in ASTM F3411-22A which specifies a rectangular area with a diagonal no greater than 7 km as a maximum display area may be used. Establishing a value for a geographic proximity smaller than the size of the U-space airspace limits the sharing of unnecessary data among the USSPs and thus supports the technical and economic efficiency of the network.

TESTING INFRASTRUCTURE To support the satisfaction of the U-space performance requirements as per Article 15(1) of Regulation (EU) 2021/664, a possible testing environment is presented in Annex A2 to ASTM F341122A ‘Standard Specification for Remote ID and Tracking’.

ACCESS USSPs should provide the authorised users defined in Article 8(4) of Regulation (EU) 2021/664 with access to aggregated network remote identification data using the communication protocol defined in Annex 4 to ASTM F3411-22A ‘Standard Specification for Remote ID and Tracking’.

ALTITUDE ABOVE MEAN SEA LEVEL USSPs should convert the heights above the WGS 84 ellipsoid exchanged with the ASTM F-3411-22A standard to height above mean sea level (MSL) before providing it to the UAS operators.

ALTITUDE ABOVE MEAN SEA LEVEL Due to the fact that the altitude above mean sea level (AMSL) calculated from the measured value of the barometric sensor and the QNH, cannot be compared to the calculated value of the altitude AMSL using the GNSS systems, it is recommended to exchange the altitude values in relation to the WGS 84 ellipsoid between U-space systems. Wherever the flight altitude above sea level is required to be determined with the use of GNSS systems, it is recommended to use the EGM2008 or at least the EGM96 geoid models as the definition of mean sea level, as agreed with the competent authority.

UAS EMERGENCY STATUS Certain UAS capabilities may not be available as from 26 January 2023, the date on which Regulation (EU) 2021/664 will become applicable. Regarding the identification of the UAS emergency status as per Article 8(2)(f) of Regulation (EU) 2021/664, and to compensate for the potential lack of automatic transmission of the information, it is considered an acceptable alternative for UAS operators to:

(a)continuously monitor the UAS behaviour, and when implemented, the built-in safety parameters or emergency status;

(b)manually trigger the UAS emergency status toward the USSP. The proposed alternative is considered acceptable until 1 year after the date of entry into force of Regulation (EU) 2021/664, i.e. 26 January 2024.

UPDATE FREQUENCY Competent authorities may use the value defined in ASTM F3411-22A ‘Standard Specification for Remote ID and Tracking’ as aggregated monthly target for update frequency (no more than 3 seconds for 95 % of the time, and in 1 second for 99 % of the time).

ACCESS USSPs may provide a visual interface to the authorised users to access data in accordance with items 5.5.5.6 to 5.5.5.8 of ASTM F3411-22A ‘Standard Specification for Remote ID and Tracking’.