FAA Announces Effort to Expand the Safe Integration of Unmanned Aircraft

2016-02-28

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is establishing an aviation rulemaking committee (PDF)with industry stakeholders to develop recommendations for a regulatory framework that would allow certain UAS to be operated over people who are not directly involved in the operation of the aircraft.

The FAA is taking this action to provide a more flexible, performance-based approach for these operations than what was considered for Micro UAS. The committee will begin its work in March and issue its final report to the FAA on April 1.

“The Department continues to be bullish on new technology,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “We recognize the significant industry interest in expanding commercial access to the National Airspace System. The short deadline reinforces our commitment to a flexible regulatory approach that can accommodate innovation while maintaining today’s high levels of safety.”

The rulemaking committee will develop recommendations for performance-based standards for the classification and operation of certain UAS that can be operated safely over people; identify how UAS manufacturers can comply with the requirements; and propose operational provisions based on the requirements. The FAA will draft a rulemaking proposal after reviewing the committee’s report.

“Based on the comments about a ‘micro’ classification submitted as part of the small UAS proposed rule, the FAA will pursue a flexible, performance-based regulatory framework that addresses potential hazards instead of a classification defined primarily by weight and speed,”said FAA Administrator Michael Huerta.

To develop this framework, the FAA is seeking advice and recommendations from a diverse set of aviation stakeholders, including UAS manufacturers, UAS operators, consensus-standards organization, and researchers and academics.

The UAS registration task force established last October serves as a model for the Micro UAS rule-making committee. The committee (PDF) will be co-chaired by Earl Lawrence, Director, FAA UAS Integration Office and Nancy Egan, General Counsel, 3D Robotics.

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Russia is withdrawing from the Open Skies Treaty.

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2020-12-26

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2020-12-23

Drone application in the oil and gas sector

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2020-09-24

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2020-09-14

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2020-09-12

SenseFly drones help monitor Lake Winnipeg ice hazards in Switzerland.

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2020-09-03

Development of unmanned aircraft on Military-Technical Forum "ARMY-2020"

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2020-04-30

The Pros and Cons of Drone Delivery

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2020-04-06

Medical Drone Delivery Success in Ireland

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This week, the research team released more details about the project in an ENDO 2020 abstract to be published in the Journal of the Endocrine Society.