Aviation safety regulations for unmanned aircraft operations: Perspectives from users

Aviation safety regulations for unmanned aircraft have become an important area of discussion for policymakers and practitioners alike. While there is a large extant literature examining the formulation and implementation of regulations for unmanned aircraft operations, these are usually done from technical, legal, or societal perspectives. However, the most affected stakeholders are the unmanned aircraft users themselves (e.g., through compliance costs or the inability to undertake certain operations). This study examines New Zealand's aviation safety regulatory framework for unmanned aircraft from the perspective of unmanned aircraft users. The sample consists of 767 unmanned aircraft users who were asked about the ease of finding regulations, the effectiveness of safety promotion efforts, and whether the strictness of the regulatory system is appropriate. Users were able to qualitatively suggest particular areas for stricter or less strict regulations. New Zealand is an ideal case study because its regulations are analogous to the model regulations from the International Civil Aviation Organisation, as well as other major jurisdictions. Participant perceptions about the ease of finding regulations, the effectiveness of government safety promotion efforts, and the strictness of the current safety regulations suggest participants do not see these as an issue. However, 26.60% of participants raised areas that they would like to see stricter regulations for, and 33.25% raised areas for less strict regulations. These are divided into themes using thematic analysis and discussed in terms of their policy implications for New Zealand's current regulatory framework.