Without federal rules governing remotely piloted aircraft — also known as drones and unmanned aerial systems — states are blazing their own (potentially conflicting) paths, according to a report in the National Journal. Three years after it was tasked with developing a set of rules for commercial drone operators, the FAA still has not finalized the regulations, instead doling out more than 1,000 exemptions to allow businesses to fly drones. Tired of waiting on Washington, 26 states have developed their own rules, ranging from “mildly limiting to extremely restrictive,” according to the report.
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Yes, I agree States and local gov’ts should produce their own laws and rules regarding drones and UAS systems. Why, because they are ones being effected and they FAA is so far behind in what works and what doesn’t it is no wonder why local gov’ts are doing the people’s work. At the local level the laws can be changed modified with greater speed and accuracy the FAA.
As for the Administrator, I think he should resign. Yes, all he does is give speeches full of hot air and nothing of substance. His integrity in my opinion is questionable because he “totes” the company line by being none committal and probably takes his marching orders from the political whiz kids (aka, Hacks) from the administration who only care about politics and nothing more.
Mr. Administrator, you accepted the job. Now do the job correctly. Take the correct stand by taking a stand. That is what you are getting paid to do. You are working for the whole people of the United States not the few that put you in office. That is what leadership is all about. Do the right thing.
EXCUSES! EXCUSES! EXCUSES!
At every turn, the FAA is showing itself as a paralyzed bureaucratic Agency. At a time when total flying hours are down, the number of active pilots is likewise dropping precipitously and yet the FAA budget is growing, they STILL can’t seem to get the job done. The Administrator is only good at one thing: giving speeches filled with hot air and smoke and mirrors while simultaneously patting himself on the back. The Agency ought to be apolitical and yet — sadly — it is not.
It’s time for a new Administrator who knows how to accomplish things AND has a background in aviation, not Olympic games. The ‘buck’ stops with him. And, while we’re at it, they need to lay off more than half of their legal staff … THEY are part of the problem, as well. The FAA is an Agency which ‘eating’ it’s own constituency.
“Three years after it was tasked with developing a set of rules for commercial drone operators, the FAA still has not finalized the regulations, instead doling out more than 1,000 exemptions to allow businesses to fly drones. ”
If you believe that the FAA is slow to finalizing rules for UAS integration into the NAS, then you simply do not understand the NPRM process and the enormous task the FAA has to coordinate all of the pieces involved. Three years from NPRM to Final Rules would be bureaucratic light-speed. The Part 103 rules for ultralights took 8 years. And how long have we been waiting for third-class reform?