FAA Proposes Rules To Limit Commercial Drone Use

An anonymous reader sends this report from the NY Times: In an attempt to bring order to increasingly chaotic skies, the Federal Aviation Administration on Sunday proposed long-awaited rules on the commercial use of small drones, requiring operators to be certified, fly only during daylight and keep their aircraft in sight. The rules, though less restrictive than the current ones, appear to prohibit for now the kind of drone delivery services being explored by Amazon, Google and other companies, since the operator or assigned observers must be able to see the drone at all times without binoculars. But company officials believe the line-of-sight requirement could be relaxed in the future to accommodate delivery services.

Comments

Headline 100% Wrong

[ScentCone]

The FAA's current position is that ALL (with very, very few waivered exceptions) commercial use of UAS is not allowed. Their proposed new rules would reduce their restrictions, not add to them. You can't get more restricted than "completely banned." But don't get your hopes up. It will take two or three years before these proposed rules, or some variation on them, actually take effect. In the meantime, thousands of small businesses, farmers, etc., will continue to just operate on the down-low and risk large fines.

Especially ridiculous, of course, is that people flying the exact same machines, in exactly the same place, at exactly the same time, with all of the exact same safety precautions and practices, but who are doing it for recreational purposes, will not be beholden to the same rules. Flying after the sun goes down? Just fine if you're an enthusiast. Making exactly the same flight, but getting $50 to do it? Federal fine!

Another capricious, irrational regulatory stance on the part of the executive branch. The new rules, if and when they ever stick, despite congress requiring them, by law, to have it done by September (it will never happen), will have zero impact on a reckless amateur noob or someone malicious. This is just a fee grab looking to feed the FAA with $150 every 24 months from some guy who does roofing and wants to inspect gutters without putting up a dangerous ladder. Right now he's not allowed. Someday he will be able to, if he pays more money to do so. But his neighbor can do it for fun with no legal risks. Absurd.

Commercials

[penguinoid]

FAA Proposes Rules To Limit Commercial Drone Use

I've always thought commercials drone on and on. Glad to see the FCC is doing something about this.

Re:Bureaucratic red tape

[JaredOfEuropa]

A lot of cases where drones are being used commercially (aerial photography / site surveys / inspection of industrial installations) can still be done within the line-of-sight restriction. Because the operator still enjoys the other major aspects of drones: stable flight characteristics, and a telemetry+video downlink. I'm not a ig fan of regulations, but in this case I understand why they take a conservative stance for now.

Re:Bureaucratic red tape

[LWATCDR]

These are safety rules people Keeping the aircraft in sight means and having the ability to have the operator take control is actually a good rule. It should help keep down injuries and property damage. Remember this is for a vehicle of up to 50lbs. A 50lbs vehicle moving at say 80 mph can do a lot of damage.
And before anyone says it this is for all remote control aircraft and not just quadcopters! I have seen fixed wing RC aircraft moving a lot faster than 80mph.

These rules will allow for things like aerial photography for movies, news, and real estate, also for a lot of AG uses and other inspection tasks.
Nope these are good rules to start with and in a few years maybe opened up.
The last thing anyone wants is for a 50lbs drone to crash into a school bus full of Nuns taking orphans to a Christmas party and having it crash into an animal shelter killing all the kids, nuns, and puppies.