FAA has work to do on drones
The FAA should focus on public awareness, a top drone expert says, after a high-profile drone breach at the White House and with the FAA’s proposed regulations expected soon.
“What is more needed is public awareness of flight safety. Cars are dangerous, lawnmowers are dangerous, but you learn how to do it, there’s some awareness of safety you have to have,” said Helen Greiner, chief executive of CyPhy Works, a drone startup and a co-founder of iRobot. “The record of safety is pretty phenomenal for these UAVs, and what’s missing is people with awareness of the rules.”
Last week, a wayward drone crashed into the White House, setting off a security scare and reigniting conversations about drone regulations.
The FAA has been working on proposed regulations for drones, but they have not yet been released for public comment and are unlikely to be finalized for at least two years. The regulations will include rules for hobbyist and toy drones, according to a report by Forbes.
While businesses wait for clarity about the legal uses for drones, regular citizens are taking to the skies.
“The thing that’s almost an Alice in Wonderland situation is hobbyists can fly anything they want. That kind of worked when the hobbyists were the hackers, engineers, people who put a lot of time into learning how to fly,” Greiner said. “What’s changed is now you can pick up something for $500, $1,000, go out and fly under no types of rules, but you have to face that against on the commercial side you can’t fly at all.”
Drones were such a popular gift this holiday season that the FAA put together a website reminding people of existing regulations, which prevent people from flying drones above 400 feet, among other things.
The FAA also banned drones from flying near the Super Bowl.
“Going to the big game? Have fun, cheer on your team and keep it a no-drone zone. Don’t spoil the game. Leave your drone at home,” the FAA said in an awareness video posted online.
In an interview with CNN, President Obama said more regulations need to be in place to deal with the rising number of small drones.
“We don’t yet have the legal structures and the architecture both globally and within individual countries to manage them the way that we need to,” Obama said last week.
Part of his job in his final two years in office “is seeing if we can start providing some sort of framework that ensures that we get the good and minimize the bad.”
http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/technology_news/2015/01/faa_has_work_to_do_on_drones
