Work continues on ways to safely integrate unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) into the National Airspace System, as the U.S. Department of Transportation revealed earlier this month that more than 1 million drones have been registered with the FAA. That figure includes 878,000 recreational operators, who are each assigned a single identification number for all UAS […]
drones
Shark Tank for drones
Five finalists of the first Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) Innovation Challenge will get 10 minutes to sell their new technology to government and industry representatives on Feb. 7, 2018. This is AUVSI’s inaugural Innovation Challenge, which gives small, start-up and early stage companies operating in the commercial, defense, and non-traditional unmanned systems or […]
Development of autonomous air tanker begins
The arsenal of airborne tactics available to firefighters and first responders may soon grow as Thrush Aircraft has formed an alliance with unmanned aerial vehicle and systems manufacturer Drone America to begin development of the world’s first autonomous air tanker. The new tanker is expected to blend Thrush’s airframe and airborne delivery system expertise with […]
New report: Only a small percentage of drone reports pose safety risk
The Unmanned Aircraft Safety Team (UAST) Drone Sightings Working Group has released a new report on the FAA’s 3,714 drone sightings reports collected by flight crews, air traffic controllers and citizens from November 2015 to March 2017. The report found that only a small percentage of drone reports pose a safety risk, while the vast […]
Drone Trusted Operator Program takes off
ARLINGTON, Va. – The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) reports it has appointed representatives from the industry to serve on a steering committee to develop the Trusted Operator Program (TOP) for remote pilots and unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) training organizations. The TOP is a UAS community initiative to facilitate best practices, codes of […]
The Droner’s Manual published
New from ASA is “The Droner’s Manual: A Guide to the Responsible Operation of Small Unmanned Aircraft.” In The Droner’s Manual, author Kevin Jenkins compiles the most important and relevant knowledge into a guide for both beginner and experienced operators, according to ASA officials. With his expertise as a unmanned aerial vehicle operator in government, industry, […]
Are airports the safest place to fly drones?
A veteran aviation attorney has proposed a counterintuitive idea: That airports just might be the safest places to fly drones. But the claim by Mark Dombroff of Alexandria, Va.-based law firm LeClairRyan, comes with quite a few qualifiers. The unregulated and unauthorized flight of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) in and around airport airspace clearly is […]
No pilot? No problem!
An age-old component of aviation has been the pilot-in-the-loop. A pilot brings sophisticated human faculties to bear in solving problems of flight and making judgments on proper actions. But sometimes, the presence of a pilot can be detrimental — to the pilot. If an aircraft is to be subjected to dangers ranging from gun and […]
Tracking drones in flight
The FAA has released a report from its Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Identification and Tracking Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC) on technologies available to identify and track drones in flight. The ARC’s 74 members included aviation community and industry member organizations, law enforcement agencies and public safety organizations, manufacturers, and researchers. According to FAA officials, the […]