Article I — Purpose, Authority and Scope
1.1 Purpose. These Competition Rules govern the conduct of IACSF Class III Drone Combat competition: eligibility, aircraft and Combat System specifications, arena requirements, competition format, scoring, penalties, officiating and safety.
1.2 Authority. Adopted by the Competition Rules Committee under Bylaws Article XI and Technical Code §3.4, which reserves the Class III weight, dimensional envelope, propulsion, control and Combat System specifications to these Rules. Official interpretation rests with the Competition Rules Committee; the Commissioner may issue binding interpretations in urgent matters; the Event Head Judge holds in-event interpretation authority (Bylaws §11.4).
1.3 Scope. These Rules apply to every IACSF-sanctioned event at which the UAS Dogfight Simulation discipline (Class III Drone Combat, Melee format) is contested, including exhibitions, invitationals, League Rounds and Championships, and bind all Member Teams, operators, crew, officials and equipment suppliers taking part.
1.4 Hierarchy. In the event of conflict: applicable FAA or national civil aviation regulation first, then the IACSF Technical Code and Safety Manual, then these Rules, then any event program or Technical Directive. The more restrictive standard applies (Technical Code §1.2).
1.5 Amendment. Reviewed annually by the Competition Rules Committee; substantive amendments require Board approval. The Committee may issue a Class III Bulletin with immediate effect on a safety matter, subject to Board ratification at its next regular meeting.
Article II — Definitions
Terms defined in the IACSF Glossary of Defined Terms and the Technical Code carry the same meaning here. The following are specific to Class III.
| Arena |
The fully enclosed netted volume within which all Class III competition flight takes place. |
| Arena Breach |
Any part of an aircraft passing through, over or under the Arena netting during a Heat. |
| Armed |
State in which an aircraft’s Combat System can register Hits and be Stunned; aircraft are Armed only inside the Arena on the Fight Controller’s call. |
| Combat System |
The IACSF-homologated electronic hit-detection and motor-control system fitted to every Class III aircraft (Technical Code Art. II). |
| Disabled |
Permanent motor cut commanded by the Combat System on an aircraft’s third Stun in a Heat, or by an official. A Disabled aircraft is Out. |
| Flying |
An aircraft under power and airborne, or on the ground for less than 10 seconds and able to take off. |
| FPV |
First-person view; the Operator flies by live video from the aircraft, not by direct sight. |
| Grounded |
An aircraft on the Arena floor, netting or an obstacle, unable to take off, for 10 seconds or more. A Grounded aircraft is Out. |
| Heat |
A single scheduled engagement between four or more aircraft, timed and scored under Article VII. Pool Heats, Semi-final Heats and the Final Heat are Heats. |
| Hit |
A Combat System event confirmed under Article VII.6 and recorded by the Scoring System. Every confirmed Hit causes a Stun. |
| Lance |
The single rigid contact implement permitted on a Class III aircraft under Article IV.4. |
| Melee |
The Class III competition format: a Heat of several aircraft in which the last aircraft Flying wins and finishing order follows the order of elimination. |
| Operator |
The licensed remote pilot in command of a Class III aircraft during a Heat. |
| Operator Station |
One of the numbered positions outside the Arena from which an Operator and Spotter control an aircraft, behind which judges are positioned (Judging Standards §4.2). |
| Out |
Eliminated from the Heat: Disabled, Grounded, breached the Arena, or Disarmed by an official. |
| Scoring System |
The IACSF-approved electronic system that receives Combat System events, commands Stuns and Disables, and produces the official Heat result. |
| Spec Airframe |
The identical, organizer-supplied Class III-A airframe used by every Operator in Melee Heats under Article IV.6. |
| Spotter |
A licensed team member at the Operator Station who maintains visual line of sight with the aircraft while the Operator flies FPV, as required under 14 CFR §107.31 and §107.33. |
| Stun |
A 3.0-second motor cut commanded by the Combat System on a confirmed Hit. The aircraft falls, and may resume flight when motors re-enable. |
| Time-Out |
Suspension of the Heat clock by the Event Head Judge or Fight Controller. |
Article III — Eligibility
3.1 Operators. Every Operator must hold a current FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate (or national equivalent) and an IACSF UAS-stream licence at the tier the event level requires (Licensing Grades IACSF-LIC-001 §1.2 and §3). Event organizers may not waive tier requirements.
| Exhibition / demonstration |
Tier 1 — Club |
| Invitational, Regional |
Tier 2 — Regional |
| National, League Round |
Tier 3 — National |
| IACSF Championship, Continental |
Tier 4 — Elite |
3.2 Spotters. Each Operator must be accompanied at the Operator Station by one Spotter holding at minimum a UAS Tier 1 licence. The Spotter maintains unaided visual line of sight with the aircraft at all times it is airborne and may call an abort under Article IX.
3.3 Teams. Entries are made by Member Teams or, at Exhibition and Invitational level, by Operators the Event Director has invited. Each entry names one Operator, one Spotter, and up to two crew.
3.4 Aircraft. Each entered aircraft must be registered with the FAA or the applicable civil aviation authority, carry a compliant Remote ID broadcast module, hold current Class III homologation (or Provisional Classification under Technical Code §3.5), and pass pre-competition inspection under Article X.
3.5 Spare aircraft. An Operator may register up to two identical spare aircraft. Spares must pass inspection and are sealed until the Technical Inspector authorizes a swap. A swap between Heats is permitted; a swap during a Heat is not. In Melee Heats flown on Spec Airframes, replacement is governed by Article IV.6.
3.6 Age. Operators must be 16 or older, matching the FAA Part 107 minimum. Operators under 18 require a signed guardian consent held by the IACSF.
3.7 Conduct. All participants are bound by the IACSF Code of Ethics, the Code of Conduct Acknowledgment and the WADA Prohibited List (Bylaws Article XVIII).
Article IV — Class III Aircraft Specifications
4.1 Envelope. Class III Melee is contested in sub-class III-A (multirotor). Sub-class III-B (fixed-wing) is retained for Exhibition and demonstration flights only and may not enter a Melee Heat.
| Maximum take-off weight, with battery, Combat System, Lance and guards |
1,000 g |
1,500 g |
| Maximum dimension, excluding Lance |
350 mm motor-to-motor diagonal |
1,200 mm wingspan |
| Propellers |
Max 5.1 in (130 mm); full-ring propeller guards mandatory |
Max 8 in (203 mm); pusher or ducted only |
| Propulsion |
Electric only |
Electric only |
| Battery |
Lithium chemistry, max 6S (25.2 V nominal), max 1,500 mAh, hard-case or armoured pack |
Lithium chemistry, max 6S, max 3,000 mAh |
| Speed |
Not limited by rule; governed by Arena size |
Not limited by rule |
4.2 Mandatory systems. Every aircraft must carry:
- A flight controller with a configured failsafe that, on loss of control link for more than 1.0 s, cuts motors (III-A) or commands a spiral descent with motor cut (III-B).
- A hardware arming switch on the transmitter and a software arm-inhibit that prevents motors from spinning unless the Fight Controller’s arming tone has been received by the Scoring System.
- An FAA-compliant Remote ID broadcast module, powered whenever the aircraft is powered.
- The homologated Combat System under Article V, wired to the flight controller so that it can cut and re-enable motors, with its status LED visible from all sides.
- A visible high-intensity status LED: green Armed, flashing red Stunned, solid red Disabled or Disarmed, white Idle.
- Full-ring propeller guards on every propeller, of a material and section published in the Class III Homologation Sheet.
- An analog or digital FPV video transmitter within the power and frequency limits assigned under Article VI.
4.3 Prohibited. In addition to Technical Code Article VI: autonomous flight modes other than failsafe and return-to-home during a Heat; GPS-position hold during a Heat; any projectile, entanglement, adhesive, cutting, spinning, heated or electrical device intended to damage another aircraft; any contact implement other than the single Lance permitted under Article IV.4; combustion propulsion; onboard recording or transmission systems beyond the FPV link and Combat System telemetry, except a Technical Inspector-sealed onboard action camera for broadcast use. This Article gives effect to the Board’s amendment of Technical Code Article VI permitting the Lance as a competition implement; it is not a weapon within the meaning of the Sponsorship Integrity Policy.
4.4 The Lance. Each aircraft may carry one Lance: a single rigid rod of fibreglass or carbon composite, mounted forward and fixed to the frame, projecting not more than 300 mm beyond the propeller guard, not more than 8 mm in diameter, ending in a hemispherical cap of not less than 12 mm diameter, with no edge, point, hook, barb, moving part or protrusion, and weighing not more than 40 g including its mount. The Lance is the only part of an aircraft that may be designed for contact. Lances are homologated by type and inspected before every Heat; a Lance that is cracked, sharpened or missing its cap is replaced before the aircraft flies.
4.5 Physical contact. Contact between Flying aircraft is permitted and is part of the Melee format, including contact with the Lance, guards and frame. Contact with a Grounded, Stunned or Disabled aircraft on the floor, with the Arena netting or structure to gain advantage, or with any obstacle in a manner that damages it, is prohibited and judged under Article VIII. Damage sustained in permitted contact is the owner’s risk, or the Organizing Entity’s for Spec Airframes under Article IV.6.
4.6 Spec Airframes. All Melee Heats are flown on Spec Airframes: identical III-A airframes of a homologated type, supplied, prepared, sealed and numbered by the Organizing Entity, each fitted with the Reference System Combat System, Lance and guards. Operators supply and bind their own radio receiver, FPV video transmitter or camera module of an approved type, and goggles, and may adjust rates and tune only within the settings the Technical Inspector unlocks. Each Operator is allocated one Spec Airframe and up to two replacements per event; an Operator who exhausts replacements before the Final Heat withdraws. Wreckage remains the Organizing Entity’s property and is recovered by the Recovery Crew. The Spec Airframe fee is set in the IACSF Fee Schedule. The Board may open an Open Melee class on Operator-owned airframes in a later season on the Technical Standards Committee’s recommendation.
4.7 Identification. Each aircraft carries its Heat number on the top and both sides in characters at least 25 mm high in the colour assigned to its Operator Station, and the Operator’s name on the underside. Status LEDs are the assigned station colour when Idle.
4.8 Homologation. Airframe types, Lances, guards and Combat Systems are homologated under Technical Code Article VIII. A Provisional Classification under §3.5 is valid for exhibition and qualifying only and lapses at the end of the season in which it is granted.
Article V — Combat System
5.1 Approved systems only. Class III aircraft may use only a Combat System homologated by the Technical Standards Committee for Class III (Technical Code §3.4). One system is designated the Reference System for each season and is fitted to every Spec Airframe.
5.2 Architecture. The Combat System consists of a forward-firing infrared or eye-safe laser emitter, a set of receivers covering the airframe, a controller that timestamps and radios each event to the Scoring System and that can cut and re-enable the flight controller’s motor output, and a status LED. The emitter must be laser Class 1 or IR-LED only; no visible-spectrum laser above Class 1 is permitted.
5.3 Hit and Stun parameters. The Technical Standards Committee publishes the following for each homologated system in a Class III Homologation Sheet; values below are the initial Reference System targets.
| Effective engagement range |
3 m to 20 m |
| Emitter beam cone |
6° full angle at 10 m |
| Trigger |
Operator-commanded burst, 0.5 s, minimum 2.0 s between bursts |
| Receiver coverage |
All aspects, at least 6 sensors; a Hit registers from any angle |
| Stun response |
Status LED flashing red within 100 ms; motor output cut for 3.0 s; motors re-enable automatically at 3.0 s |
| Stun immunity |
5.0 s after motors re-enable, during which the aircraft cannot be Stunned again |
| Stuns to Disable |
3 in one Heat; the third Stun is a permanent motor cut and a solid red LED |
| Event telemetry |
Shooter ID, target ID, Stun start and end, Disable, timestamp to 10 ms, to the Scoring System within 250 ms |
5.4 Calibration. Each Combat System is bench-calibrated by the Technical Inspector before the event and spot-checked before each Heat with a range and cone test and a Stun test on the bench. A system that fails a spot-check is replaced before the Heat starts; the Heat may be delayed up to 5 minutes for this purpose.
5.5 Sealing. The Combat System controller and its connection to the flight controller are sealed at pre-competition inspection. A broken seal is a technical violation referred to the Commissioner (Technical Code §7.3).
5.6 Scoring System. The Scoring System is operated by the Timing and Scoring Director. It is the primary evidence of a Hit, Stun, Disable and elimination order under Judging Standards §3.4(a), and it holds the official Disarm command for every aircraft in the Arena. Its log is retained for 5 years with the inspection records (Technical Code §7.4).
Article VI — Arena, Airspace and RF Management
6.1 Enclosed Arena required. All Class III competition flight takes place inside a fully enclosed Arena: netting on all vertical faces and the top, anchored to the ground or floor. The Arena is double-skinned: an outer structural net with no opening larger than 25 mm, rated to arrest a 1.5 kg aircraft at 120 km/h without failure, and an inner debris mesh with no opening larger than 10 mm on all vertical faces, separated from the outer net by at least 300 mm. Both skins are inspected by the ESO before each session and after any Heat in which an aircraft struck the netting at speed (Safety Manual §2.3).
6.2 Dimensions and floor. Internal volume not less than 60 m long × 30 m wide × 15 m high for Melee Heats. The Arena floor is a Primary Exclusion Zone during flight (Safety Manual §2.1) and is covered with a fire-resistant impact surface. Frangible obstacles may be placed inside the Arena and are published in the event program; obstacles must be free of edges and secured against being carried.
6.3 Spectator standoff and AMOC. The IACSF venue standard requires a 200-foot standoff between spectators and the primary UAS flight corridor (Safety, Insurance and Venue Standards §1.5, §3.3.2). A Class III event that places spectators closer than 200 feet must hold an approved Alternative Method of Compliance under §3.3.3, submitted to the Safety and Compliance Committee at least 60 days before the sanctioning application deadline, demonstrating that the double-skinned Arena delivers equivalent or greater safety against airframe, debris and battery hazards. With an approved AMOC the minimum standoff is 5 m from the outer net behind a continuous 4-foot barrier; without one the 200-foot standard applies.
6.4 Operator Stations. Eight numbered Operator Stations, each in an assigned colour, located outside the Arena behind a barrier with an unobstructed view of the Arena for the Spotter. Judges are positioned behind the Operator Stations (Judging Standards §4.2). Every Operator’s FPV feed is mirrored to the judging position and available to the broadcast.
6.5 Airspace. Class III operations are covered by the event’s FAA authorization and NOTAM (Venue Standards §3.2) and by 14 CFR Part 107 or an applicable waiver. Netting does not remove the need for authorization. At a multi-discipline event the Separation Plan in the Event Safety Plan must provide temporal separation: no Class III aircraft is Armed while any full-scale aircraft is airborne, unless the ESO and the FAA have approved a physical airspace separation plan (Safety Manual §8.2).
6.6 Night sessions. Heats at night or in low light require prior written approval of the IACSF Commissioner and any required FAA authorization; aircraft must carry high-visibility lighting visible from all angles and Arena boundaries must be illuminated (Safety Manual §8.1).
6.7 RF management. A Frequency / RF Coordinator is designated for every Class III session (Safety Manual §2.2.2). Each Operator Station carries a fixed control-link channel and FPV video channel; up to eight video channels are in use in a Heat, and the video system used must be homologated for eight simultaneous links at the assigned power. FPV video power is limited to 25 mW analog or the equivalent digital setting unless the Coordinator authorizes more. All transmitters remain off until the Fight Controller calls “channels open” for that Heat. Dedicated channels are separated from JWC telemetry and broadcast frequencies in the Separation Plan.
6.8 Weather. Class III Heats are suspended when sustained surface wind exceeds 20 knots or gusts exceed 28 knots, when visibility is below 1 statute mile, on any lightning within 10 NM, or when precipitation compromises FPV video or netting integrity (Safety Manual §5.4). Heats inside a roofed or indoor Arena may continue in precipitation at the ESO’s discretion.
Article VII — Competition Format
7.1 Standard format. A Class III event is a 64-Operator Melee in three stages: a Pool Stage of 8 Heats of 8 aircraft, from which the last 2 aircraft Flying in each Heat advance; a Semi-final Stage of 2 Heats of 8, from which the last 2 Flying in each advance; and a Final Heat of 4 aircraft. Eleven Heats decide the event. The Event Director may publish a 32-Operator (4 Pool Heats, 1 Semi-final Heat of 8, Final of 4) or 96-Operator format in the event program no later than the entry deadline (Website Rules R10).
7.2 Entry and seeding. At a 64-Operator event: 48 places by IACSF World Ranking in the Class III discipline as of the seeding deadline, 8 host-region wildcards nominated by the Event Director, 8 places from an open qualifier held under Article XI. Pool Heats are drawn so that ranked Operators are distributed evenly by seed band, with wildcards and qualifiers drawn last, under Competition Committee supervision (Website Rules R11). Semi-final Heats are drawn so that Operators from the same Pool Heat are separated.
7.3 Heat sequence. Call to station at T-8 minutes; Spec Airframe and Lance handed over, receiver bound, channels open, Combat System spot-check; launch to numbered start pads, Idle and Disarmed; arm tone and clock start; Heat ends when one aircraft remains Flying or at time; Disarm all, “Arena cold”, recovery. An Operator not at the station within 5 minutes of the call forfeits (Website Rules R15). Turnaround between Heats is not less than 8 minutes for recovery and netting inspection.
7.4 Heat rules.
| Duration |
Pool Heat 5:00; Semi-final Heat 6:00; Final Heat 8:00. Clock stops on Time-Out. |
| Start |
Aircraft on numbered start pads spaced around the Arena; Armed and airborne on the Fight Controller’s tone |
| Objective |
Be the last aircraft Flying |
| Stun |
Every confirmed Hit cuts the target’s motors for 3.0 s. The aircraft falls; if it can take off again within 10 s of touching down it is still Flying |
| Disabled |
A third Stun in the Heat is a permanent motor cut. The aircraft is Out |
| Grounded |
An aircraft on the floor, netting or an obstacle and unable to take off for 10 s is Out |
| Arena Breach |
The breaching aircraft is Disarmed and Out, and a penalty applies under Article VIII |
| Heat end |
When one aircraft remains Flying, or at time |
| Finishing order |
Reverse order of elimination. Aircraft still Flying at time are ranked by Stuns inflicted minus Stuns taken, then Hits inflicted, then a 60 s sudden-death restart of those aircraft only |
| Advancement |
Pool and Semi-final Heats: the last 2 Flying advance. Final Heat: finishing order is the event result |
| Re-fly |
Ordered by the Event Head Judge only for a Scoring System failure affecting more than one aircraft, an RF interference event confirmed by the RF Coordinator, or a safety stop not caused by any Operator. Aircraft already Out stay Out; the re-fly is among the remaining aircraft |
7.5 Elimination record. The Scoring System records the time and cause of every elimination. Where two aircraft are eliminated within the same second, the aircraft with fewer Stuns taken is placed higher.
7.6 Hit confirmation. A Hit is confirmed by a Scoring System event (Judging Standards §3.4(a)); the Stun it causes is its visible confirmation. Where the Scoring System is unavailable the Heat is stopped and re-flown under Article VII.4. Disputes over eliminations are settled by the Event Head Judge from the Scoring System log and the FPV recordings and are final during competition (§3.4).
7.7 Team Melee variant. Where the event program provides, a Team Melee Heat is flown by two teams of 4 aircraft; the team with an aircraft Flying when the other team has none wins, and Hits between team-mates do not Stun. Team Melee is contested only as an exhibition or in a designated team event.
7.8 Ranking points. Points toward the IACSF World Ranking (Bylaws §12.5) are awarded by finishing position from 1 to 64 on the schedule the Competition Rules Committee publishes for the season; Exhibition results carry no points.
Article VIII — Engagement Rules and Penalties
8.1 Engagement. Operators may manoeuvre freely inside the Arena and may engage any other Flying aircraft with the Combat System or by contact with the Lance, guards or frame. Hovering or holding position on the Arena floor, netting or an obstacle for more than 10 s while Armed and able to fly is Camping and is judged as Grounded after a warning.
8.2 Prohibited conduct during a Heat.
- Contact with an aircraft that is Stunned and falling, Grounded or Disabled, or with any aircraft on the floor.
- Deliberate contact with the Arena netting, structure or start pads, or use of the netting to trap an opponent.
- Contact intended to strike an opponent’s battery or Combat System rather than props, guards or frame, as judged from the FPV and wide-shot recordings.
- Camping.
- Transmitting on an unassigned channel, or raising transmit power above the assigned limit.
- Continuing to fly, or attempting to take off, after being Disabled or after a Disarm command.
- Ignoring a Time-Out, stop signal or Fight Controller instruction.
- Coaching or communication to the Operator from anyone other than the Spotter.
- Collusion between Operators to eliminate a third, as judged by the Event Head Judge from the recordings.
- Any conduct the Event Head Judge finds unsportsmanlike (Judging Standards §3.3).
8.3 Penalty schedule. Penalties are assessed by the Event Head Judge or designated penalty judge and recorded on the official penalty log (Judging Standards §3.5). Penalty points accumulate across the event. Where a penalty is a Stun, the Scoring System applies it immediately.
| Camping |
Warning, then judged Grounded |
Judged Grounded |
| Contact with a falling, Grounded or Disabled aircraft |
Penalty Stun |
Disabled; 2 penalty points |
| Deliberate contact with netting or structure |
Penalty Stun; 1 penalty point |
Disabled; referral to Technical Inspector |
| Targeting battery or Combat System |
Disabled; 2 penalty points |
Disqualification from event |
| Arena Breach |
Out plus 2 penalty points |
Disqualification; failsafe check |
| Flying or launching after Disabled or Disarm (over 3 s) |
Disqualification from Heat; result void |
Disqualification from event |
| Unassigned channel or excess power |
Disqualification from Heat; RF Coordinator report |
Disqualification; referral to Commissioner |
| Ignoring stop signal or Time-Out |
Disqualification from Heat |
Disqualification; referral to Judicial and Disciplinary Committee |
| Outside coaching |
Warning |
Penalty Stun |
| Collusion |
Disabled for all Operators involved; 3 penalty points |
Disqualification |
| Unsportsmanlike conduct |
1 to 3 penalty points at the Event Head Judge’s discretion |
Disqualification |
| Technical non-compliance found post-Heat |
Heat result reversed for that aircraft |
Disqualification; referral to Commissioner (Technical Code §7.2) |
8.4 Penalty points. 5 accumulated penalty points at one event is a disqualification. Points reset at each event but are recorded against the Operator’s licence; 15 in a season triggers Competition Rules Committee review of the licence.
8.5 Disqualification. A disqualified Operator’s results at the event are void and ranking points are forfeited; their place in any later Heat is taken by the next-placed Operator from the same Heat.
Article IX — Safety and Emergency Procedures
9.1 Primacy of safety. Nothing in these Rules limits the authority of the Event Safety Officer to halt or suspend any Class III activity (Bylaws §13.3; Safety Manual §7.3). The ESO’s decisions on safety are final during flight operations.
9.2 Stop signal. The Fight Controller’s call of “STOP STOP STOP” on the operator channel, a red light at each Operator Station, and a horn are the Class III stop signal. On the stop signal every Operator cuts throttle or lands immediately and the Scoring System Disarms every aircraft; the clock stops. Any of the ESO, Event Head Judge, Fight Controller, RF Coordinator, Arena Fire Marshal, any Spotter or any Operator may call a stop.
9.3 Fly-away and failsafe. An aircraft that does not respond to control input must be failsafed by the Operator (arming switch off) at once. If the failsafe does not activate within 2 s the Spotter calls a stop. An aircraft that is still under power after a stop signal is a Level 2 Significant Incident (Safety Manual §5.1) and is withdrawn from the event pending Technical Inspector examination.
9.4 Arena Breach. Any breach of the outer net is a stop signal. Any strike on the netting at speed, or a Lance or debris caught in the inner mesh, requires an ESO inspection of both skins before flight resumes. A breached aircraft leaving the Arena triggers the UAS accident protocol: 100-foot site exclusion and ESO investigation (Safety Manual §5.2). A breach that reaches an occupied area is a Level 3 Serious Incident: session suspended, incident report to the Commissioner within 24 hours.
9.5 Battery and fire. Melee produces crashes and damaged batteries as a matter of course. An Arena Fire Marshal with two lithium-rated extinguishers, a fire blanket and a sand bin is stationed at the Arena during every Heat. A visible battery fire or smoke inside the Arena is a stop signal; the Arena is not entered until the Fire Marshal declares the pack safe or extinguished. Every crashed aircraft is treated as a damaged-battery risk: the Recovery Crew disconnects the pack first, places it in a sand bin, and no crashed pack is recharged at the event. Charging in the UAS Hot Pit follows Safety Manual §2.2.2 with an attendant present.
9.6 Personnel in the Arena. No person enters the Arena while any aircraft is powered. Arena entry for recovery follows the Fight Controller’s “Arena cold” call, made only when the Scoring System shows every aircraft Disarmed and every Operator has displayed the disarmed transmitter to the Fight Controller. The Recovery Crew wears face shields and cut-resistant gloves, recovers wreckage in the order the Fire Marshal directs, and clears the floor of debris before the next Heat. Recovery and netting inspection together take not less than the 8-minute turnaround in Article VII.3.
9.7 Medical. Minimum medical cover follows the UAS event standard, and the Championship standard at Championship level (Venue Standards §1.4.1). The Medical Station may not be located inside the Class III Primary Exclusion Zone.
9.8 Briefing. Every Operator and Spotter attends the daily safety briefing before the first Heat of the day and signs the attendance sheet (Venue Standards §1.3.2). The Class III briefing covers the stop signal, Arena cold procedure, assigned channels, contact rules, Stun and Disable behaviour, weather limits and the day’s Separation Plan windows.
9.9 Incident reporting. All incidents, including near-misses, netting strikes and battery events, are entered in the ESO Daily Log and reported under Venue Standards §1.4.3.
Article X — Officials, Judging, Inspection and Protests
10.1 Required officials. Every Class III session has the officials below on station. Roles may be combined only where the Seat Roster permits; the ESO and Event Head Judge may never be the same person.
| Event Director |
IACSF |
Overall accountability; appoints the Protest Panel; approves format changes with Competition Committee consent |
| Event Head Judge |
Chief Judge |
Final on-site judging authority; elimination and contact disputes; penalties; re-fly orders |
| Panel judges (minimum 3) |
Event Head Judge |
Observe from behind the Operator Stations with FPV mirrors and the wide shot; corroborate contact, Arena Breach and conduct calls |
| Event Safety Officer |
Organizing Entity, IACSF-certified |
Netting inspection, weather, stop authority, Arena cold clearance |
| Arena Fire Marshal |
Organizing Entity, under the ESO |
Battery and fire response inside the Arena; directs recovery order |
| Recovery Crew Chief |
Organizing Entity |
Wreckage and debris recovery, floor clearance, battery quarantine |
| Technical Inspector |
IACSF |
Pre-competition, pre-Heat and post-Heat inspection; Spec Airframe preparation and seals; Lance and guard checks |
| Fight Controller |
JWC Holdings on a JWC Weekend; JDM Sports Group at a standalone event |
Radio calls: channels open, arm tone, stop, Arena cold; Heat flow with the Battle Director |
| RF Coordinator |
Organizing Entity |
Channel assignment by station, interference monitoring, confirmation of RF events for re-fly |
| Timing and Scoring Director |
IACSF |
Scoring System operation, Stun and Disable commands, official results, log retention |
10.2 Pre-competition inspection. Under Technical Code §7.1 and Article IV to V of these Rules: registration and Remote ID, Part 107 certificate and IACSF licence, Spec Airframe weight and dimensions including Lance and guards, battery specification and case, failsafe demonstration (link loss test on the bench), arm-inhibit test, Combat System calibration, Stun test and seal, LED function, FPV power setting, Lance cap and condition, guard integrity, station number and colour. Aircraft that fail do not compete until re-inspected.
10.3 Pre-Heat and post-Heat inspection. Every aircraft is checked for Lance, guard and seal integrity before each Heat. Any aircraft may be inspected after a Heat or at random during the event (Technical Code §7.2, §7.3). The four Final Heat aircraft are weighed and have their Combat System seal and firmware verified before results become official. Refusal or tampering is a disqualification.
10.4 Results. Provisional results are posted within 15 minutes of each Heat. Results become official 30 minutes after posting unless a protest is lodged. Only administrative scoring errors may be corrected by the Chief Judge after that point.
10.5 Protests. A registered Operator or Team Manager may protest an official’s decision in writing within 30 minutes of the decision, with the protest fee, which is refunded if the protest is upheld (Website Rules R20, R22). The Event Director appoints a Protest Panel of three certified officials not involved in the decision. The Scoring System log, the FPV recordings of every aircraft involved and the wide-shot recording are the primary evidence. Hits and Stuns recorded by the Scoring System are not protestable during competition (Judging Standards §3.4).
10.6 Appeals. Decisions of the Protest Panel may be appealed to the IACSF Appeals Committee under Bylaws Article XXI. Commercial sanctions imposed by JDM Sports Group as Commercial Rights Holder follow the commercial appeals route in the Team Participation License Agreement and are outside these Rules.
Article XI — Transitional Provisions
11.1 Phase 1 exhibition season. Until the Board designates a Class III Championship, Class III events are sanctioned as Exhibition, Invitational or Qualifying Events only. During this period:
- Spec Airframes and Lances compete under Provisional Classification (Technical Code §3.5) with the enhanced inspection in Article X.2 plus a pre-Heat failsafe and Stun demonstration in the Arena.
- One Combat System is designated the Reference System and is the only system permitted; it is fitted to every Spec Airframe by the Organizing Entity.
- Operators require UAS Tier 1 for Exhibition and the open qualifier, and Tier 2 for the Pool Stage of an Invitational; Tier 3 is required at any event carrying World Ranking points.
- Results at Invitational and Qualifying Events count toward the UAS licence event totals in Licensing Grades §3.2 to §3.4 and, once the Competition Rules Committee opens the discipline ranking, toward the Class III World Ranking.
11.2 Open qualifier. An Organizing Entity runs an open qualifier for the eight qualifier places in Article VII.2 as a series of 8-aircraft Melee Heats on Spec Airframes under the Heat rules in Article VII.4, with the last Flying in each Heat advancing to a qualifier final whose top eight enter the Pool Stage. Entrants must hold UAS Tier 1 and pass the full Article X.2 inspection.
11.3 Championship designation. The Competition Rules Committee will recommend Championship designation to the Board when: at least 5 Class III events have been sanctioned in a season; at least 64 Operators hold UAS Tier 3 or above; the Reference System, Spec Airframe, Lance and guard types have two seasons of inspection and incident records, or a second Combat System is homologated; and the Safety and Compliance Committee has issued a Class III annex to the Safety Manual covering double-skin netting, battery recovery and contact.
11.4 Review. These Rules are reviewed by the Competition Rules Committee within 30 days of each Class III event in the Phase 1 season, and in full before Championship designation. The Stun duration, Stun immunity, Stuns-to-Disable and Lance dimensions in Articles IV and V are reviewed after Round 1 against the incident log.
Article XII — Regional Leagues and the Club Arena Format
12.1 Purpose. Regional Leagues give Class III a year-round competitive base and a route into the Championship that does not depend on the World Ranking or the open qualifier. They are sanctioned by the IACSF as Club and Regional Events under Licensing Grades §3.1 and §3.2 and operated by IACSF-affiliated clubs and regional bodies under a Regional League licence issued by the Commercial Rights Holder.
12.2 Regions. Six regions are recognised for 2027–2028: North America, Latin America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Asia, Oceania. The Competition Rules Committee may split or merge regions on the recommendation of the Commercial Rights Holder as participation grows.
12.3 Club Arena format. Regional League events are flown in the Club Arena format, which differs from the Championship Melee in five respects and is otherwise governed by these Rules:
| Arena |
Not less than 30 m × 15 m × 8 m, single-skin net with no opening over 25 mm, rated to arrest a 1.0 kg aircraft at 100 km/h; spectator standoff per Venue Standards §1.5 or an approved AMOC |
60 × 30 × 15 m, double-skinned |
| Heat |
Four aircraft, 4:00, last one Flying wins; last 2 Flying advance |
Eight aircraft, 5:00 to 8:00 |
| Contact |
Not permitted. No Lance is fitted. Contact between aircraft is judged as in Championship Article VIII.2 for deliberate contact |
Permitted with the Lance, guards and frame |
| Stun |
As Article V.3: 3.0 s motor cut, 5.0 s immunity, third Stun Disables |
Same |
| Aircraft |
Operator-owned, within the III-A envelope of Article IV.1 with full-ring guards and the Reference System Combat Module fitted; Spec Airframes optional where the club supplies them |
Spec Airframes only |
Because there is no contact and no Lance, a Club Arena event does not require the inner debris mesh, the Arena Fire Marshal or the Recovery Crew of Articles VI and IX; it requires an ESO, a Technical Inspector, an RF Coordinator, a Timing and Scoring Director and one panel judge, and follows the battery and stop-signal procedures of Article IX in full.
12.4 League structure. A Regional League season consists of not fewer than four sanctioned Club Arena events in the region within the calendar year, each carrying regional ranking points on the Committee’s schedule, and a Regional Final of 16 Operators flown in Championship Melee format on Spec Airframes where the Commercial Rights Holder provides a Championship-standard Arena, or in Club Arena format otherwise. The Regional Final is a Qualifying Event for the purposes of Licensing Grades §3.
12.5 Regional seats. From the 2028 season, the eight host-region wildcard places in Article VII.2 become Regional League seats: the champion of each recognised region, and the two highest-placed non-champions across all Regional Finals by regional ranking points, enter the Pool Stage of every Championship round of the following season. From the 2029 season the Committee may increase Regional League seats to 24 of 64 and reduce World Ranking seats to 32, retaining eight open qualifier seats, on evidence that at least four regions have completed two full league seasons.
12.6 Licensing. Operators in Club Arena events require UAS Tier 1; Regional Final entrants require Tier 2. Club Arena events count toward the event totals in Licensing Grades §3.2 to §3.4. A Regional League licence holder must appoint an IACSF-certified ESO and Technical Inspector for every event and may not waive tier requirements.
12.7 Marks. Regional Leagues compete under the “DCWC Regional League — [Region]” designation licensed by the Commercial Rights Holder, with the IACSF endorsement tag. The Championship title, the World Ranking and Championship designation remain IACSF property under the Commercial Rights Agreement.
