FAA and Industry to Collaborate on Expanded UAS Operations
FAA Administrator Michael Huerta. Photo: Robb Cohen.
Today at AUVSI’s Unmanned Systems 2015 conference, the Federal Aviation Administration announced a new program to expand unmanned aircraft system operations in the national airspace, which will include operating within line of sight in urban areas, operating outside line of sight for rural agricultural operations and operating beyond line of sight in railroad applications.
The Pathfinder Program will supplement data gained through the six FAA-approved UAS test sites and the current commercial exemptions.
The administration will partner with industry to gather data working towards making the use case to safely fly these expanded operations without having to ask for permission. CNN will work with the FAA researching the use of UAS for newsgathering in urban environments over people, PrecisionHawk will begin collecting data for flights outside line of sight of the operator in agriculture applications, and BNSF Railway will test beyond-line-of-sight operations for supplemental track inspections.
According to FAA Administrator Michael Huerta, the program aims to push the edges of technology and what the FAA can allow, working with partners who have specific uses they want to employ and using their resources to see what is possible. Huerta says the Pathfinder Program is about “trying to push the envelope” to see “what is possible.”
This exploration of the possibilities of the technology was first explored by CNN Senior Legal Advisor David Vigilante.
“The only way that CNN wins is if everybody wins,” says Vigilante. He says they hope for a “whole industry to come into place that we can tap into and be a part of.”
“Everything that moves the industry forward for one of the members of our industry moves the entire industry forward,” says Earnest Earon, president and cofounder of PrecisionHawk. PrecisionHawk intents to use its Lattice Program, a UAS traffic management system that taps into existing network infrastructure, such as cell networks, to operate beyond line of sight.
A representative from BNSF Railway said the company hopes to fly 300 to 400 miles over track to search for broken rail or track obstructions in to add to current visual inspections.
Huerta confirmed that the companies approached the FAA with the proposal and even encouraged other companies to do the same to expand industry partnerships.
The administrator also commented that it wouldn’t surprise him if some of the comments on the FAA’s proposed rules for UAS align with the areas that will be researched in the Pathfinder Program.
“We’re pleased to see the FAA recognize the need to keep the U.S. competitive with other countries who are also interested in this technology. If the next big leaps in UAS innovation are going to occur inside the U.S., we need to lay the groundwork now for more expansive and transformational operations, including beyond line of sight.”
