unmanned aerial systems

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The commercial drone technology ecosystem has come a LONG way in the last five years, and businesses all over the world have spent years exploring the potential of drones. Over this time, there have been at least eight distinct levels of evolution within commercial drone technology. The eight phases include the following:

One: Affordable…

North Carolina Governor, Roy Cooper, signed two bills this week to regulate the use of unmanned aerial systems (UAS or drones). First, House Bill 337 revises existing state drone law to make that existing state drone law applicable to model aircraft. House Bill 128 prohibits drone use near prisons –with the term “near” being defined…

The Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Part 107 waiver process for the operation of unmanned aerial systems (UAS or drones) in certain restricted airspace or beyond the limitations of the Part 107 UAS regulations, was originally designed to streamline approval. However, for many drone operators who have had their Part 107 waivers denied, the process can often be mysterious and frustrating.  And the FAA’s public database of all approved Part 107 waivers, while useful, does not include denied waivers, which could be key for many operators in determining what information is necessary and what safety processes are desired by the FAA in order to obtain an approval.

In a recent report, the FAA’s denials were reviewed and analyzed. The information was obtained through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request by Drone360. Drone360 received access to 1,656 denied waivers that were submitted over 247 days.
Continue Reading Part 107 Waivers: Does Your Waiver Stand a Chance?

Yet another piece of drone legislation is in circulation; the Safe DRONE Act of 2017 was recently introduced by U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner, John Hoeven, Catherine Cortez Masto, and Dean Heller. The Act proposes the following for unmanned aerial systems (UAS or drones) in the U.S.:

  • Develop a trained UAS workforce: Directs the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) secretary to designate a consortium of community and technical colleges to expand the capacity of those colleges to train students for career opportunities in the UAS industry.
  • Coordinate federal UAS spectrum policy: Establishes an interagency working group – with a broad array of stakeholders who will be tasked with developing a cohesive federal policy to address communications needs to facilitate safe integration of drones into the National Airspace.
  • Advance unmanned traffic management (UTM): Directs the DOT secretary, in coordination with NASA, to develop an implementation plan within one year to achieve full operational capability of UTM.
  • Enhance UAS safety and security: Establishes an interagency working group involving relevant federal security agencies to develop recommendations for enhanced safety and security of expanded small UAS operations beyond visual line of sight and over people. It requires that the FAA release rules within one year of enactment.

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Continue Reading U.S. Senators Introduce the Safe DRONE Act of 2017

The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has announced an audit of the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) “approval and oversight processes” for Part 107 waivers for unmanned aerial systems (UAS) operations. The audit will begin before month’s end and will assess the FAA’s processes for granting waivers and…