Commercial
In 2015, Canada released a Notice of Proposed Amendment (“NPA”), proposing a new risk-based regulatory framework for small unmanned aircraft systems (“sUAS”) that weigh less than 55 pounds (25 kg) and are operated within visual line-of-sight (“VLOS”). Although Canada and the U.S. have engaged to coordinate
Regulations
On April 19, 2016, FAA hosted the first day of its 2016 Unmanned Aircraft Systems Symposium. The purpose of the Symposium is to provide a forum for UAS industry and stakeholders to provide input to FAA decision-makers on topics related to UAS integration. FAA Administrator Michael Huerta opened the
Accidents
A lack of regulation has been blamed for a drone hitting a British Airways passenger jet, as it emerged that police have failed to investigate 40 near-misses in the past year. Calls for action to mitigate the threat to passenger aircraft from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) came from Europe’
Testing
NASA and its partners, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc., Honeywell International and the RTCA Special Committee (SC)-228, are validating and advancing technologies that will assist the Federal Aviation Administration as they develop the regulations to allow integration of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) into the National Airspace System (NAS). The
Commercial
The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) has released an interactive analysis that finds 38 types of business operations have been approved by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to fly unmanned aircraft systems commercially in the National Airspace System (NAS). According to the report that analyzed more than 3,
Regulations
AOPA and nine other aviation groups signed a letter opposing a proposed amendment to the U.S. Senate’s FAA Reauthorization Act that would do away with federal preemption in the integration of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) into the National Airspace System. Section 2152 of the FAA Reauthorization Act calls
Commercial
Drone sales are soaring in Germany, but so is the number of potentially dangerous near-miss incidents around airports. The authorities have now decided that it's time to reel in the flying robots. Germans have developed a taste for drones. Sales are climbing and prices are dropping. Some
Commercial
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is currently reviewing the report and recommendations of the Micro Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Aviation Rulemaking Committee. The agency had tasked the group to develop recommendations for performance-based regulations that would let certain unmanned aircraft operate over people not directly involved in the flight
Commercial
The FAA's Aviation Rulemaking Committee on Micro UAS is recommending standards that could clear the way for commercial drone flights over populated areas and help speed the introduction of package delivery drones and other uses not yet possible. The Associated Press obtained a copy of the recommendations, which
Commercial
Unmanned aircraft airspace information provider AirMap and the American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE) released a notification system to make airport operators aware of nearby drone flights. The Digital Notice and Awareness System (D-NAS) is a quasi flight planning and notam system for participating unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) operators
Regulations
The Federal Aviation Administration is working on new technology that can detect and identify drones and drone pilots who fly near airports, according to a contract obtained by Motherboard using the Freedom of Information Act. The contract, between the FAA and CACI International, notes that the tech will allow the
Regulations
The Australian Government's Civil Aviation Safety Authority has announced that regulatory requirements for an important sector of the booming remotely piloted aircraft industry are being eased. Commercial operators of very small remotely piloted aircraft will no longer need to obtain a number of regulatory approvals. This includes an