Researchers decry limits on drones

By Jessica Meyers

WASHINGTON — A regulatory battle in Washington has compelled professors to ground their research drones, the tiny aircraft academics consider vital for archaeological surveys, river mapping, and countless other discoveries.

The Federal Aviation Administration recently clarified that only hobbyists can fly unmanned aircraft without a special permit. The restrictions aim to improve safety and curb the myriad schemes entrepreneurs have envisioned, from Amazon package drops to pizza deliveries.

But now scholars warn the FAA’s action jeopardizes their work and undermines basic education. The issue lands them in the center of a fight over government’s role in airspace and the appropriate use of drones.

“Aircraft are being defined so broadly that it leaves no space for innovation,” said Paul Voss, an associate professor of engineering at Smith College in Northampton and coordinator of a protest letter signed by nearly 30 researchers, including professors from Boston University and Harvard.

“If you go to Walmart and buy a 15-inch remote-controlled helicopter and use it for fun, it’s a toy,” Voss said. “If you use it for education or research from 4 feet off the grass, it’s an unmanned aircraft system.”

Voss expects to cancel an aerial-vehicle design course this year because students won’t be able to fly prototypes.

Eric Poehler, an assistant professor of classics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, plans to downsize his archeological project in Pompeii because he can’t teach his students how to use new equipment or test it himself. And Scott Drzyzga, who teaches geography at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania, won’t get the bird’s-eye view so crucial to his research on the removal of dams from rivers.

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