I am currently working on a waterrocket which has landing legs and a few other features that I wanted to test before launching it. Therefore I was thinking about getting an A2 license for drones that can weigh up to 4 kilograms, so that it can lift the rocket and test some of the features during a drop test. However, I read that in the EU it is illegal to drop stuff from drones with any license in the Open Category. Are there any exceptions or special licenses which would permit a drop test?
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As an alternative can you do your drop test from a tethered balloon? Sometimes the rules between free flight and tethered flight are different.
Depending on the height you need, what are the rules surrounding dropping from a tall structure like say a bridge, apartment building, ski lift / gondola?
What about dropping while parasailing or sky diving?
What about detachable payload from a high powered model rocket?
Does EU make a difference between "Drone" and RC plane or RC helicopter?
Sorry this is not an answer. I could not comment. I was hoping that maybe some of the suggestions might open an alternative view on how to find a solution to your issue.
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1$\begingroup$ Under the EU definition, any vehicle that is not controlled by an onboard pilot is considered an UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle). Therefore the same rules apply to RC airplanes and helicopters. However, I don’t think waterrockets fall under the category of UAV because they aren’t controlled during flight $\endgroup$ Commented Aug 18 at 8:53
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$\begingroup$ @TheRocketfan, that is similar to Canada and the US. Model rockets (regardless of propellent) are not considered UAVs. Though there is some debate now about model rockets that now include vectored thrust (engine on a gimble), and GPS guided parachute to reduce the walk for recovery. $\endgroup$ Commented Aug 19 at 2:01
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$\begingroup$ I really like your idea about dropping the waterrocket from a balloon with a tether or tall building. I haven’t seen anything yet, that says I can’t drop objects from low altitude tethered balloons, but then again I haven’t seen anything that says I can since the search results (even on the EASA webpage) didn’t show anything $\endgroup$ Commented Aug 19 at 9:56
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$\begingroup$ @TheRocketfan, ooohh another thought just hit me. Kites are not considered drones since they are tethered. You could in theory drop it from a kite. Depending on the weight of you payload, this could be another option. $\endgroup$ Commented Aug 19 at 13:10