Close calls with drones spur US registration of owners

[webfact]

Close calls with drones spur US registration of owners
JOAN LOWY, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Concerned about rising reports of close calls and safety risks involving drones, the U.S. government announced Monday it will require many of the increasingly popular unmanned aircraft to be registered.

Pilot sightings of drones have doubled since last year, including near manned airplanes and at major sporting events, and there are reports of interference with wildfire-fighting operations, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said at a news conference.

"These reports signal a troubling trend," said Federal Aviation Administration chief Michel Huerta. Registration will increase pressure on drone operators to fly responsibly, he said, adding, "When they don't fly safely, they'll know there will be consequences."

The FAA now receives about 100 reports a month from pilots who say they've seen drones flying near planes and airports, compared with only a few sightings per month last year. So far there have been no accidents, but agency officials have said they're concerned that a drone weighing only a few pounds might cause serious damage if it is sucked into an engine or smashes into an airliner's windshield.

Toys and small drones that don't present a safety threat are likely to be exempt from the requirement. Drones that weigh only a pound or two (up to a kilogram) or that can't fly higher than a few hundred feet are considered less risky, but heavier ones and those that can fly thousands of feet pose more of a problem.

To work out details, the FAA and the Transportation Department are setting up a task force including government and industry officials, pilots and hobbyists. They'll recommend which drones should be required to register.

It's hard to identify drones seen operating illegally near airports and planes or over crowds, and registration by itself won't change that. But it would allow the FAA to identify drones when they can be recovered after landing or crashing, a common occurrence.

Earlier this year, drones operated illegally crashed on the White House lawn and at the New York stadium where the U.S. Open Tennis Championships were being held. In both cases the drone operators came forward. But if they hadn't, the government would have had no way to identify them.

"There can be no accountability if the person breaking the rules can't be identified," Foxx said.

There's no official count of how many drones have been sold in the U.S., but industry officials say it is in the hundreds of thousands and will easily pass a million by the end of the year.

Foxx said he has directed the task force to deliver its report by Nov. 20 and hopes to have registration requirements in place by mid-December. The timeline is tight, but the urgency of the problem demands swift action, he said.

The Consumer Electronics Association predicts that 700,000 drones will be sold this holiday season, and Foxx said it's especially important that new drone users be taught the responsibilities that come with flying.

Registering drones that could pose safety risks "makes sense, but it should not become a prohibitive burden for recreational users who fly for fun and educational purposes and who have operated harmoniously within our communities for decades," Dave Mathewson, executive director of the Academy for Model Aeronautics, said in a statement.

And Daniel Castro, vice president at the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, urged the government not to "rush into new rules that could have unintended consequences down the line."

Regulations devised by the task force "will have long-term implications for free speech, privacy and the commercial development and deployment of this nascent technology," he said in a statement.

Foxx was vague when asked about the FAA's authority to require registrations, especially on an expedited basis that will provide little if any opportunity for public comment first. It typically takes the agency years to put new regulations in place. Also, a 2012 aviation law includes a provision exempting the model academy's 180,000 members from drone regulations.

Jim Williams, a principal at the law firm Dentons who formerly headed the FAA's drone office, said he believes the agency can get around having to go through the cumbersome rulemaking process by formally determining small drones are a new type of aircraft and therefore fall under existing FAA regulations that say all aircraft must be registered.

"I don't think there is any way they could realistically get through the rulemaking process by Christmas," Williams said.


-- (c) Associated Press 2015-10-20

[smotherb]

the fact that no one thought of this problematic issue before is simply amazing

[BKKdreaming]

the increase percentage is a BS number as there are so many more now ,

But it is a problem , I am not sure how much more than a flock of birds ?

But I can bet that Police and other officials will not have to follow the same rules , and maybe even TV stations ,

I am more concerned about people using them to see what is worth stealing , or just to be a pain in the asss buzzing your house ,

I am not sure if you have any "air rights" above your property ,

It will be interesting to see who has the political power ($$$$$) to have the new rules help them and restrict the competition !

[hawker9000]

the increase percentage is a BS number as there are so many more now ,

But it is a problem , I am not sure how much more than a flock of birds ?

But I can bet that Police and other officials will not have to follow the same rules , and maybe even TV stations ,

I am more concerned about people using them to see what is worth stealing , or just to be a pain in the asss buzzing your house ,

I am not sure if you have any "air rights" above your property ,

It will be interesting to see who has the political power ($$$$$) to have the new rules help them and restrict the competition !

Buzzing MY house?? 'Sounds like a great opportunity for practice with a pellet pistol. Or maybe it'll bring back slingshots.

"Who? Me? Damaged your drone?? No - must've collided with a bird. Too bad. Maybe you should fly it somewhere else..."

You may not have "air rights" above your property. But you can prohibit trespassers (trying to find their crashed drones....).

I'm just waiting for someone to invent and start marketing their "ADD"s (Anti-Drone Devices). Something that interferes with (or hijacks ) the radio link might be more fun than the aimed projectile approach...

[Shot]

the increase percentage is a BS number as there are so many more now ,

But it is a problem , I am not sure how much more than a flock of birds ?

But I can bet that Police and other officials will not have to follow the same rules , and maybe even TV stations ,

I am more concerned about people using them to see what is worth stealing , or just to be a pain in the asss buzzing your house ,

I am not sure if you have any "air rights" above your property ,

It will be interesting to see who has the political power ($$$$$) to have the new rules help them and restrict the competition !

Buzzing MY house?? 'Sounds like a great opportunity for practice with a pellet pistol. Or maybe it'll bring back slingshots.

"Who? Me? Damaged your drone?? No - must've collided with a bird. Too bad. Maybe you should fly it somewhere else..."

You may not have "air rights" above your property. But you can prohibit trespassers (trying to find their crashed drones....).

I'm just waiting for someone to invent and start marketing their "ADD"s (Anti-Drone Devices). Something that interferes with (or hijacks ) the radio link might be more fun than the aimed projectile approach...

Here you go http://www.engadget.com/2015/10/14/anti-drone-rifle-shoots-down-uavs-with-radio-waves/

[Expat1]

The US govt just wants control...of everything and everyone...period. It will soon be very easy to recognize an American walking down the street. He is the guy with the leash marks around his neck and wrists.

[hawker9000]

The US govt just wants control...of everything and everyone...period. It will soon be very easy to recognize an American walking down the street. He is the guy with the leash marks around his neck and wrists.

And others are just looking for any excuse to get a good hate-on. This is really the fault of the usual assortment of pinheads managing to ruin things for everybody. The FAA originally took the position that drone-flying was outside their jurisdiction. But then commercial pilots began reporting drones in their airspace and it became apparent there was a risk of collision. So the FAA was more-or-less obliged to step in. If morons hadn't been operating these things where it was obvious they shouldn't have been, these new rules wouldn't have been necessary. I for one wouldn't want to be riding in an acft that's just taken off or is on a landing approach that sucks one of these things into an intake. And I'm not that crazy about the threat to privacy posed by these things to begin with...