Last week, the Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) Aviation Rulemaking Committee’s (ARC) Final Report was released. The report has been much anticipated by the drone industry and its stakeholders. The report recommends a complete overhaul of existing Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations with entirely new regulations. The goal of that
unmanned aircraft systems
FAA UAS Support Center: Faster Responses, More Streamlined Process
This week, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced its Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Support Center Case Management System (CMS), designed to streamline how industry stakeholders’ questions are answered and provide responses in a more timely manner. This new process will use a Contact Customer Support form that allows the public as well as stakeholders to…
Close to 2,000 FAA UAS Waivers in Two Years
Last week, on the two-year anniversary of the small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) rule (or Part 107), a report was released by the Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) stating that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has granted approximately 2,000 waivers since the inception of Part 107. Part 107 sets forth certain parameters and…
FAA Issues Statement Clarifying its Authority
In light of the rise in use of drones in the national airspace, there has been some confusion regarding the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) authority over navigable airspace and federal preemption for state and local drone laws. In response, the FAA released a statement regarding federal versus local drone rulemaking authority. In that statement, the…
Drones and Insurance: How Unmanned Aircraft Systems Can Assist Insurers in Timely and Effectively Evaluating Property Damage Claims
A typical claim for a homeowner will involve some type of damage to the property, which, in turn, prompts the insurer to perform an inspection of the insured property, to assess the cause and extent of the alleged damage. Depending on the nature of the claim, insurers may be able to have a solitary claims…
Kansas State Offers UAS Training for First Responders
Kansas State University Polytechnic Campus began working with law enforcement partners in the area to offer a training course specifically targeted for first responders seeking to use unmanned aircraft systems (UAS or drones) for daily operations and safety procedures. Kurt Carraway, a retired U.S. Air Force colonel serves as the executive director of the Applied…
Texas Dept. of Public Safety Launches Drone Program
The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) has launched a new unmanned aircraft systems (UAS or drones) program for public safety purposes. The DPS plans to use its 17 drones for a variety of public safety purposes across the State, including officer safety, search and rescue, disaster support, aerial observation support, crash reconstruction, crime scene…
How Do We Control the Crowded Skies?
While the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) completed some of testing and research of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) traffic management system as directed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), we still have a lot to learn before UAS can be safely and broadly integrated into our national airspace. To date, NASA maintains that the…
DOT Announces Drone Pilot Program to Encourage Local and National Collaboration
President Donald Trump has directed the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to launch an initiative which will safely test and validate advanced operations for drones in partnership with state and local governments in select jurisdictions. According to the DOT, the results of the Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Integration Pilot Program will be used to speed up the safe assimilation of drones into national airspace, which will in turn showcase the benefits of this emerging technology in the U.S. economy.
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BZZZ! Research on the Annoying Noise of UAS
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) released the results of a study that determined how annoying the ‘bzzz’ of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS or drones) really is to the public on the ground below. NASA researchers compared the noise generated by drones to that of cars, and found that indeed, there was a greater…