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What is a UAV or RPAS? Since their development RPA's have had many different names as the industry continuously evolved around them. Today drones are referred to as RPAS, but previously they were also known as drones and UAV's. The new Canadian Aviation Regulations (CARs) for RPAS that came into effect in June 2019 apply to all "small remotely piloted aircraft" (sRPA) UAV - or "Unmanned Air Vehicle" is a vehicle operated without a person on board, it is controlled remotely or autonomously from outside the aircraft RPA - or "Remotely Piloted Aircraft" is another name for a UAV, a term now most commonly used and a term that will be used in this course sRPA refers to any remotely piloted aircraft that has a maximum take-off weight of at least 250g (0.55 pounds) but not more than 25kg (55 pounds Air Vehicle - is a powered aircraft that can include airplanes, helicopters, multi-rotors or airships Transport Canada now uses the term RPAS or "Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems" his system includes a set of configurable elements consisting of a remotely piloted aircraft, its control station, the command and control links and any other system elements required during flight operation. The aircraft itself is referred to as an RPA or "Remotely Piloted Aircraft" which includes any navigable aircraft, other than a balloon, rocket or kite, that is operated by a pilot who is not on board. Different types of RPAS There are a wide variety of different types of RPA systems. In recent years the multi-rotor has seen the largest growth of all RPAS types. With improved technology and lower and lower prices, these multi-rotor RPAS can now be quite easily acquired and flown by the general public. Many of you taking this course are likely doing so because you will be flying a multi-rotor aircraft. Because of the wide variety of RPAS types in operation, there are also a wide variety of designs and levels of sophistication (aeroplane vs helicopter vs multi-rotor) Flight controls Sizes For instance Military RPAS can be so sophisticated that they are basically "real" aircraft with a cockpit on the ground rather than in the aircraft. In this course however we will mostly focus more on the most common types of RPAS that are typically flown by civilians. Regulations Canadian Aviation Regulations regulate the operation of RPAS since they share our skies with other aircraft. Starting in June 2019 pilots may obtain two types of Certificates depending on the type of flying they will do: Basic Pilot Certificate Advanced Pilot Certificate More complex commercial operations typically require you to apply for a Special Flight Operations Certificate (SFOC) safety being the most important consideration: The safety of the public The safety of other users of the airspace