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to FAA Regulations for UAM Development INFLUENCING KEY REVISIONS
By Kelly Pratt
getting safety-enhancing technologies to the marketplace more quickly. The new rules became effective in 2017 and give manufacturers leeway to employ what are known as consensus standards to meet airworthiness requirements. Part of a global effort to create common standards, the update also helped break down barriers and promote the acceptance of new airplanes and products worldwide, which are key factors in the development of the UAM industry. Professor of Aerospace Engineering Dr. Richard “Pat” Anderson, who Bowles studied under when he was a student, played a vital role in getting the revision effort off the ground. Working with GAMA, where Bowles and other Embry-Riddle alumni were among the leadership team, Anderson organized meetings and conferences that helped create the consensus the FAA was looking for to drive the revision of Part 23. “The rules had been outdated for 30 years,” said Anderson, chair of GAMA’s Electric Propulsion Committee. “It was very prescriptive with means of compliance written directly into federal law. It was essentially a guide on how to build an aluminum airplane.”
A surge in UAM innovation and the development of new aircraft propulsion systems are more possible today thanks to revised FAA standards that went through much of their formative stages at forums and meetings hosted by Embry-Riddle. Those sessions, which began almost a decade ago, brought together some of the top minds and authorities in aviation to help change outdated standards that many believed were stifling innovation. “Before anyone had begun to formally grapple with a solution, the team at Embry-Riddle was hosting these sessions, and it showed a lot of foresight that the university ensured it was part of the petri dish,” said Greg Bowles, a 1998 Aerospace Engineering graduate who helped organize stakeholders during his time as vice president for global innovation and policy for General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA). “It really was one of the cornerstone locations for all of this to begin.” Driven by Congress’ Small Airplane Revitalization Act of 2013, updating the FAA’s Code of Federal Aviation Regulations required overhauling its Part 23 airworthiness standards for general aviation airplanes weighing less than 19,000 pounds with 19 or fewer seats, with an eye toward
Greg Bowles
“It was very prescriptive with
means of compliance written directly into federal law. It was essentially a guide on how to build an aluminum airplane.” — Anderson
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