The Law of Unmanned Aircraft Systems

The worldwide expansion in the development and use of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) has rapidly spawned a patchwork of regulatory initiatives in the field. It is with the purpose of synthesising and clarifying this diverse body of international, regional and national law - and of indicating trends and areas of concern - that this extraordinary collection of expert essays has been compiled. The authors, working in many different parts of the world, are all in some way affiliated with the International Institute of Air and Space Law at Leiden University as either alumni, faculty members or students.

With details of developments affecting countries in every continent, including Antarctica, the authors delve into the ways regulation of UAS is affected by such aviation law elements as the following:

- - insurance;

- - criminal and civil liability;

- - role of international and supranational agencies - International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), European Union (EU), European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), Association of Southeast Nations (ASEAN);

- - privacy and cyber security; and

- - civil UAS markets.

Following detailed investigations of international and regional developments, the third section of the book covers a cross-section of national laws (Antarctica, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, China, Cyprus, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, The Netherlands, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russian Federation, Slovenia, South Africa, Suriname, Switzerland and Liechtenstein, Turkey, United Kingdom, and United States).

The authors' approaches throughout are both introductory, allowing those unfamiliar with the field to gain valuable insight into this fascinating and dynamic area, and also critical and focused, so that those more involved in the legal dimension of aviation law can further their knowledge.

Without a doubt this work enriches the legal literature and encourages stakeholders in this burgeoning field of aviation law to further examine and challenge developments and trends in regulation and of practice. Lawyers, law firms, academics, governments, relevant governmental and non-governmental agencies, and strategic planners in the UAS industry will all welcome this ground-breaking resource.