The Dog Days of Summer…
Coming out of another long summer of the doldrums and folks are wondering and asking what, if anything, is going on? We’ll start with the quantifiable and move on to the conjecture as the piece builds up a good head of steam. Its the end of summer and splashed across the front page of sUAS News is another one of my interactive Op Ed’s where the reader has been put upon to reach his or her own conclusions. For the only thing freely flying around in the U.S. unmanned community is still just rumor and innuendo. One thing we can be sure of is that another awkward season of the Obstacle Show is in the can and behind us now, as is par for the course, all solid B roll quality cable style entertainment. While on the subject, it’s beginning to look like it may not just be Guido trouble down on the Jersey shore!? So, if we don’t get in the air, maybe we can be on the air by 2015. That’s the type of pure gold you get here at sUAS News! I’ll even go so far as to suggest that someone jot it down for next year’s unmanned business forecast. This revelation will undoubtedly add another couple of billion dollars to the potential sector revenue stream. I can easily see it fitting somewhere between the commercial business case for Global Hawk, the FAA certifying a sense and avoid (SAA) systems in 2013, or the more grounded prospect of finding Bigfoot.
Most of mainland Europe is on vacation and here in the State’s we’re gearing up for the public sector holiday season….which for most hardened bureaucrats kicks in mentally right about the time the Halloween candy hits the shelves. This year we also must contend with the becalming effects of the UAPO gone several weeks sans funding. Without a doubt this short-term hardship will be the fallback to forestall any, or all substantive action for as long as is plausible, and then some. I reckon that if this calamity were played correctly, and with a bit of help from above, they could conceivably run out the clock and squeeze in a punt till after the election cycle. Not an easy play to execute as it would require the skills of a real artist to pull it off unscathed. (Editors note: Subsequent to this piece being written, notice has been made that the NPRM has been pushed back till January 6.)
Recapping the finale of the symposium season…
AUVSI Unmanned Systems 2011. The gate numbers may have been up, but it was far less the show due to yours truly not being in attendance. My not being there was an on again off again affair that will have to wait to be rung out some other time. However, brother Antoine was kind enough to treat me to a blurry phone picture (only worth noting as I was unable to make anyone out), of the unwashed masses cued up to hear the regulatory gospel hour. And from what I hear, they weren’t treated to the Reverend Cleophus James pointedly asking “Do you see the light?” but reps from the civil regulatory bodies. And you’re probably wondering, what light? Exactly! The only tangible parallel here is a song and dance routine. Gleaning the value out of the previous couple of year’s progress amounts to little more than a historical frame of reference. I can at least take solace in knowing that I was spared the indignity of traveling cross-country to be haphazardly mocked. I often muse while in attendance at one of these get-togethers that the weapons grade bullshit is indeed more palatable when tempered with lucrative stock options, and a salary package that could choke a mule??? I think I am the only one in the room unfettered by the daily company community conference call, and coincidentally also a mule that doesn’t need the Heimlich maneuver. Hmmm, note to self… contemplate a possible connection between the two.
Beyond the obvious are the items stacking up in the “Who the heck is running that place anyway??” file? The summer 2011 topper has got to be ARC 2.0. Put together and commenced without a public charter??? If I may take the liberty of asking, how did they determine what companies and individuals were suitable for ARC membership. What was the criteria? Some quotes and others sources suggest a rehash of the sUAS ARC material. In any event, a FOIA request sUAS News has been sent. Ahh, another closed circuit no one is supposed to notice or dare mention. Safe to assume that it didn’t even dawn on anyone that it might be a good idea to throw some poor jamoke in there so as to at least feign a hint of impartiality? (More fodder for the Mulligan papers.) Should we still be surprised when we see the UAPO pose the “should it be public” question pertaining to UAS airspace integration? Should we, as a community of stakeholders, be outraged by this overt display of contempt? (Remember, you were warned upfront that the piece was interactive!) Does anyone still wonder why the confidence level has tanked?
I want to close this piece by reminding everyone to get a head start on his or her comments for the NPRM. I only mention it, as there is little in the way of leadership from within the community when it comes to mounting substantive efforts. The FAA expects a hundred thousand comments and it’d just break my heart if we as a community were to let them down. (Gary had put a nice countdown clock at the top right corner to remind everyone when it hits the National Register, but alas it must have malfunctioned, too many resets???)
Its not all doom and gloom (here’s hoping they ditched the notion of Type Certification), as there are of course the following caveats: you have an existing contract with the military, or can build a business case in a Publishers Clearinghouse flight envelope or …you get the idea. The rest of us that don’t quite fit into the aforementioned groups may want to get a jump on their respective flight, repair, and system manuals now as they may take some time to get done without the motivational FBO carrot. I don’t know what it is about paying your own overhead that slows things down, but it sure can take the wind out of ones sails! (Or in this case, sales.) And those of you who can’t pass a class 2 medical, well you’ll have to flick it in as your only flying option will be Light Sport pilot.
Editors note: Again, since starting this article the NPRM timeline has been pushed back to January 6 2012. Only those on the inside still believe that we’ll see a sUAS SFAR in 2013.
September already???
Breaking news… It appears the group the FAA put together (ARC 2.0??) in June will be going over the sUAS ARC’s work and the final recommendation(s). Worth noting here, they basically put the band back together without some of the original members. It would appear that the small business sector might go unrepresented. Watch for more on this developing story as information becomes available.
