AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2015 - 63

FAA PROPOSAL SETS
RULES FOR SMALL UAS

defiance of the FAA-to apply pesticides
and survey fields; the association says 80
percent of the projected market for UAS is
in agriculture. Toscano also sees potential
in public safety fields such as search-andrescue operations and firefighting. When
firefighters at a quarry fire near New
Haven, Connecticut, were uncertain how
close the fire had gotten to explosives on
site, an unmanned aircraft gave them an
aerial view of the scene.
While they may take humans out of
harm's way in hazardous occupations,
the challenge in integrating these systems
into the national airspace will be to ensure
their presence doesn't put other humans in
harm's way. Regulations recently proposed
by the FAA impose altitude restrictions on
small UAS, but as AOPA Vice President
of Regulatory Affairs Melissa Rudinger
reminded a group of UAS industry professionals at the UAS Action Summit, flying
at low altitudes does not eliminate the collision hazard with many types of general
aviation: lighter-than-air flights, helicopters, and low-altitude piston missions like
aerial application.
DELIVERY BY DRONE?

From browsing products online to a package on your doorstep in 30 minutes or less:
That's the UAS-based vision of Amazon
Prime Air.
"One day, seeing Prime Air vehicles
will be as normal as seeing mail trucks
on the road," Amazon says in frequently
asked questions about the UAS delivery
service. The company has been testing the
use of small multicopters to carry up to
five-pound payloads, which Amazon says
covers 86 percent of products sold on its

HUBSAN Price/ $173

The FAA's proposed rule for small
unmanned aircraft systems would set
requirements for systems weighing
55 pounds or less used for commercial purposes. Among them, the FAA
sets out requirements for see-andavoid capability, operator certification, and aircraft registration.
* Operators must see and avoid
other aircraft, giving right of way to
manned aircraft.
* Operators must be at least 17 years
old, obtain an FAA-issued unmanned
aircraft operator certificate with a
small UAS rating, and pass an FAAadministered knowledge test every
two years.
* Aircraft must obtain an FAA registration and display an N number. A
preflight safety inspection is required
before each flight.
* Flights are limited to daylight,
line-of-sight operations with a least
3 statute miles visibility at speeds
of less than 100 mph and altitudes
below 500 feet.
* The aircraft may not operate over
people, except those involved in the
flight.
* The systems must remain outside
of Class A airspace. Operations in
Class B, C, and D airspace, as well
as within the lateral boundaries of
the surface area of Class E airspace,
can be allowed with prior permission
from air traffic control.
* Aircraft must remain at least 500
feet below clouds and 2,000 feet
from them horizontally.
Pilots may read and comment
on the full proposal, "Operation and
Certification of Small Unmanned
Aircraft Systems," in the Federal
Register.

website, and has requested exemptions
to take its testing outdoors in the United
States. When the FAA grants permission,
Amazon says, the company will be ready.
Navigating suburban neighborhoods
surely presents more technological and
safety challenges than shooting video on
a closed set, but Amazon isn't the only
heavy hitter to throw its hat in the ring:
The Google X team is developing an
unmanned aircraft delivery system it calls
Project Wing.
So will we soon grow accustomed to
the whir of unmanned aircraft swooping in to drop movie merchandise on our
neighbor's doorstep? Not under proposed
rules from the FAA, which would require
small unmanned aircraft to remain
within line of sight of the operator or a
visual observer, and prohibit the aircraft
from operating over people not directly
involved in their operation. A survey of
residents in northeastern North Dakota,
where researchers are flying unmanned
aircraft under a certificate of authorization, found that public support waned
when it came to commercial deliveries,
with respondents citing concern over airspace safety and the safety of those on
the ground.
But Toscano thinks public support for
unmanned aircraft systems will grow as the
technology is fielded. As people learn more
about the technology's capabilities, he said,
they will be able to decide how much risk
to accept. First, Toscano said that it must
be proven in areas with minimal human
presence, and then it can progress: "Crawl,
walk, run."
AOPA
EMAIL sarah.deener@aopa.org

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Features/Quad Copter with camera

Features/Commercial applications
such as first-responders;
40-minute endurance

Website/
www.hubsan.com/productinfo

Website/
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solution/puma-ae-uas
www.aopa.org/pilot AOPA PILOT | 63

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AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2015

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