Policy Tamara Lytle P O L I CY U P DAT E Drones on the Rise A lthough drones are expanding both in the number of owners and the types of uses - and even though commercial delivery drones are often cited in the news - pizzas aren't likely to be dropped off by drone any time soon. A kidney is another story. As the technology for unmanned aircraft systems advances, so do the questions about how best to regulate them to deal with safety, privacy and other issues. CTA's Consumer Technology Ownership and Market Potential Study showed 13% of U.S. households own a drone - a jump from 10% last year. And 12% of households plan to buy a drone next year. Meanwhile, commercial use of drones is burgeoning. Firefighters use them to search for people or check out a raging blaze from above. Since 2015, 268 people have been rescued using drones according to leading drone maker DJI Technology Inc. Utility companies inspect poles with drones while keeping workers safely on the ground. Construction companies can analyze a job site in an hour instead of a week. Drones even let wildlife biologists count birds and inspect the tree canopy without the danger (and cost) of flying in a helicopter. Security and intelligence use them for surveillance. And surveyors and farmers get a bird's eye view of vast areas. And now, drones are delivering organs for surgeries. Earlier this year, a Baltimore woman received a kidney transplant after the medical team flew the organ about three miles across town in the first organ-related drone delivery. That success opens the possibility of organ donations getting to patients faster, vastly improving health outcomes. Safer Drones Several sites around the country have been chosen by the FAA for research on how to expand drone use safely. Wing Aviation, sister company of Google, won groundbreaking FAA approval this Courtesy of Parrot Bebop Commercial use of drones is burgeoning. Firefighters use them to search for people or check out a raging blaze from above. 38 SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2019 i3_0919_POLICY_Update.indd 38 I T I S I N N O VAT I O N 9/9/19 8:09 PMhttp://www.CTA.tech/research http://www.CTA.tech/research