Mandatory drone registration

Happy Montgolfier Day Everyone!

On the 21st November 1783, Pilâtre de Rozier & the Marquis d’Arlandes, made the first, manned, free ascent in a balloon, flying the Montgolfier Brothers built aerostat for about 5.5 miles (9 km) in approximately 25 minutes. Two hundred and thirty two years later the FAA is set to announce registration conditions for RPA in America.

I use the term RPA rather than the media friendly term drone as I believe all model aircraft are going to be included. Remotely piloted aircraft is then very apt.

Yesterday FAA head honcho Michael Huerta told us we will hear more today and the scheme will be in place for the expected Christmas drone rush.

“On Saturday, the task force will deliver its report to the Federal Aviation Administration,”

“We will consider their recommendations and the public comments as we develop an interim final rule on registration, which will likely be released next month and go into effect shortly thereafter.”

Chicken Little (licken if you are from UK) or rather worried quadcopter owners have been filling social media and web forums with what ifs, since the drone registration task force was announced last month.

Its allowed politicians to come out with grand statements..

“We require car registration to ensure safety and accountability, and we should do the same for drones,” Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) said when the drone registration task force was set up.

“We have rules of the road, but in this Brave New World, now we need rules of the sky,” Markey continued. “Standards for informing the public and promoting accountability must be put in place now to protect safety and individual privacy as the drones are taking flight.”

Manufacturers have rushed to stand behind geofencing and mapping schemes.

Technology companies have reiterated the moving overseas if they don’t get things their way thing.

Later today we will know for sure what the registration process looks like. Right now we think it looks like this.

RPA above 250g AUW will have to be registered.

It seems the operator not each RPA will be registered, a free process and they must affix their registration number to each RPA they own.

If it is a simple system then keep calm and carry on is apt. Keep watching your twitter feeds people.

Oh and lets remind ourselves of who bought us the recommendations

Nancy Egan of 3D Robotics

Richard Hanson of the Academy of Model Aeronautics

George Novak of the Aerospace Industries Association

Chuck Hogeman and Randy Kenagy of the Air Line Pilots Association

Jim Coon of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association

Sean Cassidy of Amazon Prime Air

Ben Gielow of Amazon Retail

Justin Towles of the American Association of Airport Executives

Brian Wynne of the Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International

Parker Brugge of Best Buy

Douglas Johnson of the Consumer Electronics Association

Brendan Schulman of drone maker DJI

Paul Feldman of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association

Tony Bates of GoPro

Matt Zuccaro of the Helicopter Association International

Mike Fergus of the International Association of Chiefs of Police

John Perry of the Management Association for Private Photogrammetric Surveyors

Brandon Declet of drone-as-a-service provider Measure

Randall Burdett of the National Association of State Aviation Officials

Sarah Wolf of the National Business Aviation Association

Baptiste Tripard of drone vendor Parrot

Tyler Collins of data acquisition vendor PrecisionHawk

Gregory McNeal of the Small UAV Coalition

Thomas Head of Walmart