The FAA Has Missed Its Congressionally Mandated Deadline To Regulate Drones

derekmead writes: When Congress passed the FAA Modernization Act in 2012, it gave the agency until September 30, 2015 to fully regulate commercial drones for use in the United States. Well, it's October 1, and we're left with a patchwork of regulatory band-aids, quasi-legal "guidelines," and a small drone rule that still hasn't gone into effect yet. This news shouldn't surprise anyone. The agency has missed most every milestone—both internal and lawmaker mandated—that has been set for it. The last two years have been fraught with lawsuits, confusion on enforcement within its own local offices (some FAA agents have told pilots they can't post videos on YouTube, for example), and various conflicting guidelines as to who can fly a drone where, and for what purposes.

Comments

Congressionally mandated penalty

[phantomfive]

If there is no congressionally mandated penalty, it's not really a law.

Why should the FAA allow drones without COAs?

[Anonymous Coward]

The majority of drone operators are not pilots. They're not trained in see-and-avoid procedures. Many are very ignorant of FAA rules. That is why many drones are flown for commercial purposes, above 400 feet (the limit for recreational use), and close to airports. They're not trained on what to do if a mechanical part fails on a drone and it has to be landed in an emergency. There are good reasons why there are prohibitions on flying drones close to people and structures, yet these are frequently neglected. This doesn't even address the people who will act out of malice toward other aircraft, which is the same thing that prompts people to shine green laser pointers at planes. I understand the benefits of drones, but they shouldn't be flown without a COA, which is special authorization from the FAA. The terms of the COA should require the drone operator be a licensed pilot. I don't see any other way to protect the national airspace because the current approach allows for reckless ignorance of safety rules that will lead to serious accidents if not corrected.

Re:Why should the FAA allow drones without COAs?

[TWX]

I think that we're going to need a definition here... What exactly is a COA?

There are already classes of manned aircraft that do not require the operator to have a pilot's license to operate. There are rules and the operators are required to follow those rules, but without a licensing requirement I expect that enforcement could be challenging sometimes.

If it's any consolation I agree that RC aircraft need reasonable restrictions. Operators need to not fly over property that they have not sought and received explicit permission to fly over. Operators need to not fly in heavily populated areas. Classes of RC aircraft need to be created so that there are sane rules governing relatively safe child toys as compared to larger amateur rigs and even bigger and more powerful professional rigs.