From November 17-20, 2025, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the European Helicopter Association (EHA) brought together regulators, industry leaders, operators and training organisations at the 2025 EASA Rotorcraft Symposium and EUROPEAN ROTORS 2025. The combination of both events provided a comprehensive platform to discuss safety, innovation and regulatory developments across the rotorcraft and VTOL domains.
EASA Rotorcraft Symposium
The event kicked off on Monday November 17, 2025 with the EASA Rotorcraft Symposium. The theme of the Symposium was “Working Together” to highlight that a safe and sustainable future for this sector of the aviation industry can be best achieved when all the different parts of the community play understand their roles, have clear objectives and work constructively to achieve them.
The Symposium featured a full-day agenda with technical sessions led by EASA experts and industry partners. Topics included single-engine IFR certification, upcoming Part 26 crashworthiness mandates, restricted icing operations, certification rulemaking updates, and current safety trends. The latter also included a interesting presentation on risk awareness of medical oxygen in rotorcraft operational.
There were also sessions addressing cybersecurity/ Part IS implementation, operational challenges (with a focus on Performance Class 2 – Defined Limited Exposure), the EASA rule simplification project and the management of mental health. The presentations will shortly be available on the event page here.
EASA at EUROPEAN ROTORS
At EUROPEAN ROTORS, EASA had a booth on the exhibit hall to enable discussions with the industry. The Agency also supported the extensive educational programme of the show, contributing to a wide range of technical discussions, safety demonstrations and engagement activities with operators, regulators and training organisations across Europe’s rotorcraft community.
Five Key EASA Highlights – all supporting key priority areas in the EASA Rotorcraft Safety Roadmap.
1. Supplemental Type Certificate for Rotor Strike Alerting System (RSAS)
EASA issued an STC to Aerotech for an RSAS on the Airbus AS350, enabling pilots to receive alerts during low-speed and hover operations when in proximity to obstacles and terrain. The system represents a clear net safety benefit for aerial work and other low-level missions.
2. Launch of Leonardo’s Virtual Reality Level III Simulator
EASA joined Leonardo Helicopters at EUROPEAN ROTORS to officially launch the new VR Level III training device, previously certified in September. The simulator introduces advanced immersive training capabilities for rotorcraft crews. The topic of training and simulator technology has been a key part of EASA’s Rotorcraft Safety Roadmap since it’s inception.
3. Safety Demonstrations and New Videos in the Rotor Safety Zone
The Rotor Safety Zone, hosted by ESPN-R as part of EASA’s Safety Promotion programme, featured practical safety demonstrations and discussions covering topics such as decision-making (“How to Say No”), human factors, sling load operations, VFR weather, upset recovery, safety management and ¡Conspicuity. ESPN-R also released two new safety videos (with associated articles) focusing on “how to say no” to avoid commercial pressure when making safety decisions and the use of ¡Conspicuity solutions to prevent mid-air collision avoidance. This success shows how far the Safety Promotion element of the Rotorcraft Safety Roadmap has come since its inception.
4. Career Day and Rotorthon
EASA supported youth engagement activities designed to attract new talent into the rotorcraft sector, including the annual Career Day and Rotorthon, which brought students and young professionals together to explore aviation safety challenges and develop innovative solutions that were presented to the industry on the final day of the event.
5. Industry Dialogue at the EASA Booth
Throughout European Rotors, EASA hosted numerous discussions with operators, manufacturers and training representatives. These exchanges helped show the human side of the Agency and provided valuable insights on current operational challenges, innovation priorities and regulatory needs.
Looking Ahead
The combined Rotorcraft Symposium and EUROPEAN ROTORS events underscore EASA’s commitment to supporting safety, innovation and sustainable growth across the rotorcraft and VTOL sector. The Agency will continue working closely with stakeholders to advance technology, improve training and reinforce safety outcomes across Europe.
Join us in Lyon for EUROPEAN ROTORS 2026 from November 30 (EASA Rotorcraft Symposium) to December 3 – see you there.
