Slashdot Mirror
New FAA Rules Allow US Companies To Fly Drones Without a Pilot's License (faa.gov)
On Tuesday, the Obama administration announced new rules for commercial drones. It states that drone pilots can now fly without waiting to get permission from the government. Previously, commercial operators were required to apply for a waiver from the FAA to operate small drones for commercial purposes. According to the new regulation, a drone must weigh less than 25kg, and it must fly under 400 feet (122m) and at a maximum speed of 161km per hour. DJI spokesman Adam Lisberg said: This is a major development for the future of drones in America. It means that businesses and farmers and government agencies and academic researchers can put drones to work without having to get an airplane pilot's license or follow other onerous rules. Those were pretty high barriers to entry. Part 107 is a vote of confidence from the FAA that drones can be safely integrated into the national airspace, and that a wider adoption of drones for all sorts of non-recreational uses will bring real benefits to America.More coverage on The Verge, and Reuters.
Nevermind, it's not clear from the summary, but all of the articles mention this. Yes there is still licensing, no the rules are not as strenuous as a full pilot's license (no medical, etc).
FPV flight is still dead without a waiver. Interestingly, you can fly above 400' as long as you are within 400' of a structure (eg, for remote visual inspection of tall buildings).
It's ok to fly whatever drones you want if you're doing it commercially, but flying it for leisure is a nono.
Glad we established that business is more important than having fun.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
when can i get a waiver for driving on the ground, and they let these people fly drones commercially, what happens when the Coca Cola bottling company uses drones to deliver cases of coke to the local stores and they drop them on top of people? there needs to be accountability and liability for commercial drones flying over populated areas
Politics is Treachery, Religion is Brainwashing
So, we currently have millions of people flying millions of drones with many, many millions of hours in the air. How many have you heard of actually hurting people ... compared to, say, wet restaurant floors, police vehicles in high speed chases, poison salad bars, suicidally crazy airline pilots, or medical errors in hospitals?
And, handing out licenses in the name of "corporate profit?" Like, say, when a guy who runs a landscaping business wants to take some photos of his work? Or when a guy who does roofing for a living wants to check some gutters that are 40' off the ground? Eeeeevil corporations being all corporate and evil and trying to make money!
How do you even function, from minute to minute, as furious as you are at all of the people around you who are trying to make some money? Also, how is it that you feed yourself without making money?
Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
It's not supposed to protect him - he just doesn't want to see it coming.
Coca Cola isn't going to be using line-of-sight drone operations to deliver cases of liquid drinks with an aircraft weighing under 25kg. Laws of physics and whatnot.
Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
So, the real problem is that you are unable to read. Is that also Amazon's fault? Are you unable to actually understand the phrase "line of sight?" Really? If not, why are commenting?
Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
Think of it as a favor. OR crony corporatism, if you prefer. Same thing. Corporations can do this, but John Q. Citizen has different rules, because, business.
You don't actually have any idea what you're talking about, do you?
Recreational users have been allowed to fly the exact same stuff the whole time. It was only the commercial operators who were banned, unless they went through some seriously onerous and expensive steps, and had people with traditional pilots' certificates operating a machine that a hobby user could operate with no certificate at all. This doesn't impact hobby fliers in any way. They can just keep doing what they've been doing.
Nice attempt to make businesses evil, though. Out of curiosity, is it safe to assume you've never actually owned or been involved in running a business? I didn't think so.
Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
The actual rules seem to say that you DO need a license to fly a drone commercially. TFS and TFA do not agree on this one.
TFS says you don't need an airplane pilot license. Under the old rules, a commercial UAS operator had to have an airplane pilot license. Under the new rules, the requirement is for an operator to "be at least 16 years old and have a remote pilot certificate with a small UAS rating, or be directly supervised by someone with such a certificate."
Yes, Mr. Ludd, what about the jobs this new freedom allows drones to replace?
Oh, and while you're thinking about that, consider the jobs that were replaced when those new-fangled computers came on the scene. And cars. And refrigerators. And railroads. And the cotton gin. And sailing ships. And plows...the list goes on and on, eh?
"I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"
Nevermind, it's not clear from the summary, but all of the articles mention this. Yes there is still licensing, no the rules are not as strenuous as a full pilot's license (no medical, etc).
FPV flight is still dead without a waiver. Interestingly, you can fly above 400' as long as you are within 400' of a structure (eg, for remote visual inspection of tall buildings).
Licensing is for commercial operations. Recreation / hobby use remains unchanged.
FPV is fine provided some means of situational awareness (eg. a spotter) is maintained. The wavier is needed if you don't intend to use a spotter.
The biggest disappointment is maintaining the Line Of Sight (LOS) requirement, although with the situational awareness requirement I do see the (gasp!) consistency in the regulations.
We let any Tom, Dick, or Harry walk around with a high speed killing machine strapped to his hip.
How DO you strap a pressure cooker or a minivan to your hip, anyway? Curious. Can you post some photos? Thx.
Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
So, lobbying for it to be legal to delivery pizza while using a skateboard is somehow lobbying against existing safety rules for over the road tractor trailers? Do tell.
Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
I've got a van strapped to my hip whenever I buckle up. Or is my hip strapped to the van?
If I have been able to see further than others, it is because I bought a pair of binoculars.
when can i get a waiver for driving on the ground, and they let these people fly drones commercially, what happens when the Coca Cola bottling company uses drones to deliver cases of coke to the local stores and they drop them on top of people? there needs to be accountability and liability for commercial drones flying over populated areas
From the FAA press release: "The new regulations also address height and speed restrictions and other operational limits, such as prohibiting flights over unprotected people on the ground who aren’t directly participating in the UAS operation." Also, see SceentCone's comment regarding the laws of physics.
Amazon's drone delivery dreams aside, the vast majority of commercial drone usage is going to be infrastructure (power grid, railway bridges, etc.) or agriculture (crop monitoring). Plus (maybe) inspection of hard-to-reach areas of homes such as roofs and rain gutters.
The Secret Service already requests the FAA to issue NOTAMs surrounding VIP movement. Being in the DC area, I get regular updates telling be when it's suddenly illegal to operate a 12-ounce plastic toy copter within wide ranges of where Obama or another VIP is attending a fundraising dinner at a fancy house along the Potomac in suburban MD or VA. Happens all the time. And of course it's long been illegal to operate any sort of RC machine of any kind in a 30-mile-wide circle around the White House/Capitol Hill area. The DC Flight Restriction Zone is huge, and covers many of the areas where politicians regularly attend events - so no need for NOTAMs there - it's a permanent ban.
Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
Some kind of liability is needed as well so amazon can't just dump it all on the 3rd party subcontractor pilot who can't cover the pay out after it crashes into an plane.
If you look at the requirements for a "remote pilot certificate"
I did look. 16 hours of web-based in-home ground school, 10 hours of in-home UAV/Drone PC-based simulator, and 16 hours of hands-on flight training at a training facility. That doesn't sound to onerous to me. And you don't need any certification at all if all you're doing is flying in your back yard, as long as it's not for commercial purposes.