No doubt this use of sUAS and the WASP will be hotly debated at the AUVSI conference this year. Both have been around since the last conference. Nothing has been done about either by the FAA.
With the newsgathering techniques of its sister publications in Britain under fire, News Corp. is facing a probe into the use of drones by its U.S.-based digital publication, The Daily.
Federal Administration Aviation spokeswoman Laura Brown says her agency is investigating whether The Daily’s use of “unmanned aerial systems” violates FAA regulations.
Commercial operators typically need a certificate in order to fly the unmanned aircraft, especially in populated areas.
The Daily’s blog shows it used drones to capture aerial footage of floodwaters in North Dakota and Mississippi in May and June.
The Daily spokeswoman Jenny Tartikoff said “we are not commenting on our newsgathering.”
