Do I need to do a risk assessment whenever I fly under the Article 16 Operational Authorisation? And how do I do one?

Question

Do I need to do a risk assessment whenever I fly under the Article 16 Operational Authorisation? And how do I do one?

Answer

No! A risk assessment is only required for flying within ‘a built-up area which is used only for recreational purposes‘ (eg a public park, gardens, etc).

This is a location which you simply would not have been permitted to fly at at all under the old regulations (which required flying be 150m from a ‘congested area’ – which included parks). FPV UK pushed for our members to be allowed to fly here, and the CAA eventually agreed – if supported by a simple risk assessment.

Your risk assessment really needn’t be complex. It can take as little as a couple of minutes to do a risk assessment. Please see page 31 (the final page) of the FPV UK Handbook for a one page guide on how to do a risk assessment – complete with an example.

Here is a further example risk assessment.

And here is a blank risk assessment template.