ATLANTA – Today, Brian Wynne, president & CEO of the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), released the following statement on the FAA’s decision to grant Yamaha a Section 333 exemption to operate UAS for commercial use in the United States:

 

“This latest exemption continues to highlight the tremendous potential UAS have in agriculture, helping farmers to more safely, effectively and efficiently manage their crops and improve yields. Yamaha’s exemption represents the first time the agency has approved a UAS for crop-spraying and it is also the largest platform granted permission to operate in the U.S.

 

“For more than 20 years, Yamaha has been using the RMAX in Japan, Australia and South Korea. It has also been working with UC Davis to research the effectiveness of RMAX to spray vineyards in California. By granting this exemption, the FAA is taking an important step forward to helping more industries in the U.S. realize the benefits UAS technology has to offer.”

 

In August 2014, AUVSI submitted comments to the FAA in support of Yamaha’s request for a Section 333 exemption to test UAS operations in agriculture and urged the agency to consider other low-risk commercial applications. AUVSI wrote:

 

“The FAA should promptly grant this exemption request, look for ways to allow for more commercial use of very small UAS immediately, and get on with rulemaking.”

 

A report from AUVSI found that precision agriculture will make up 80 percent of the domestic UAS market, which is projected to create more than 100,000 jobs and $82 billion in economic impact in the first decade after FAA integration is complete. During the same period, the UAS industry could create more than 18,000 jobs and approximately $14.4 billion in economic impact in California alone.

 

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The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) — the world's largest nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of unmanned systems — represents more than 7,500 members from 60+ allied countries. AUVSI members are involved in the fields of government, industry and academia.