Recommendation Date
Recipient Name
MOT & CAA
Text
On 14 May 2025, the Commission recommended that the Ministry of Transport and the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand, in consultation with stakeholders, work to fully integrate drones into the aviation system and develop appropriate rules and standards, to reflect technology developments and relevant international best practices.
Reply Text
On 5 June 2025, the Ministry of Transport replied:
The Ministry notes the slight change in the recommendation from the draft report which now refers to ‘relevant overseas best practices’ rather than ‘current international standards’.
The Ministry agrees with the recommendation, but is not able to fully accept it because there is currently no overseas best practice regarding drone integration. All regulators are grappling with the challenge and working collaboratively to find solutions. We therefore partially accept the recommendation.
The Ministry is currently working with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and stakeholders on a number of drone related projects, and this will continue. As outlined in my letter to you of 11 April, we have a forward-looking work programme focused on uncrewed aviation to safely integrate, support and grow the sector.
I acknowledge the Commission’s request for an indication of a timeline for implementation. Detailed policy work is required to determine the scope and nature of any rule changes needed to give effect to the recommendation. At this stage, we are not able to provide a timeline for implementation, as there are several projects that both the Ministry and the CAA are working on, and any work on drone integration would need to be prioritised alongside other projects due to our limited resources.
On 6 June 2025, the Civil Aviation Authority replied:
The CAA notes the slight change in the recommendation from the draft report which now refers to ‘relevant overseas best practices’ rather than ‘current international standards’. However, the CAA does not have awareness of other changes made to the content of the final report. This makes it difficult to provide a response as the CAA is not clear on what ‘best practices’ TAIC is referring to, nor do we have an appreciation of other changes to the report that may impact our response.
Considering the limitations discussed above, the CAA broadly agrees with the intent of the recommendation but is not able to accept it as a short- or medium-term action. Achieving the integration of drones into the aviation system requires a holistic and coordinated programme of work, which would be driven by the Ministry of Transport. If this work identifies necessary changes to Civil Aviation Rules, the CAA would be tasked with carrying out the required policy and rules development. As with all rules projects, this would naturally include careful consideration and analysis of international best practices, and especially whether they would offer an equivalent or higher level of safety than New Zealand’s existing regulatory framework. The CAA also notes that this is a rapidly developing area, with no clear international consensus yet on how best to integrate drones into the aviation system.
The CAA will continue to work closely with the Ministry on initiatives to improve the safety of unmanned aircraft operations, and as part of that will carefully consider how future policy and rules work might be scheduled and prioritised.
Based on the points raised above, the CAA does not believe our response sits solely within one of the standardised TAIC responses and we would welcome advice on how to proceed.
The Ministry notes the slight change in the recommendation from the draft report which now refers to ‘relevant overseas best practices’ rather than ‘current international standards’.
The Ministry agrees with the recommendation, but is not able to fully accept it because there is currently no overseas best practice regarding drone integration. All regulators are grappling with the challenge and working collaboratively to find solutions. We therefore partially accept the recommendation.
The Ministry is currently working with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and stakeholders on a number of drone related projects, and this will continue. As outlined in my letter to you of 11 April, we have a forward-looking work programme focused on uncrewed aviation to safely integrate, support and grow the sector.
I acknowledge the Commission’s request for an indication of a timeline for implementation. Detailed policy work is required to determine the scope and nature of any rule changes needed to give effect to the recommendation. At this stage, we are not able to provide a timeline for implementation, as there are several projects that both the Ministry and the CAA are working on, and any work on drone integration would need to be prioritised alongside other projects due to our limited resources.
On 6 June 2025, the Civil Aviation Authority replied:
The CAA notes the slight change in the recommendation from the draft report which now refers to ‘relevant overseas best practices’ rather than ‘current international standards’. However, the CAA does not have awareness of other changes made to the content of the final report. This makes it difficult to provide a response as the CAA is not clear on what ‘best practices’ TAIC is referring to, nor do we have an appreciation of other changes to the report that may impact our response.
Considering the limitations discussed above, the CAA broadly agrees with the intent of the recommendation but is not able to accept it as a short- or medium-term action. Achieving the integration of drones into the aviation system requires a holistic and coordinated programme of work, which would be driven by the Ministry of Transport. If this work identifies necessary changes to Civil Aviation Rules, the CAA would be tasked with carrying out the required policy and rules development. As with all rules projects, this would naturally include careful consideration and analysis of international best practices, and especially whether they would offer an equivalent or higher level of safety than New Zealand’s existing regulatory framework. The CAA also notes that this is a rapidly developing area, with no clear international consensus yet on how best to integrate drones into the aviation system.
The CAA will continue to work closely with the Ministry on initiatives to improve the safety of unmanned aircraft operations, and as part of that will carefully consider how future policy and rules work might be scheduled and prioritised.
Based on the points raised above, the CAA does not believe our response sits solely within one of the standardised TAIC responses and we would welcome advice on how to proceed.
Related Investigation(s)