Read Between The Lines: What We Learned From The Drone Registration Press Conference

Written by Andre Louis-Ferdinand

Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx

As I am sure most of you have heard, Monday's press conference highlighted the DOT's (Department of Transportation) lack of faith in the FAA's ability to safely integrate UAS (Unmanned Aircraft System) in the NAS (National Airspace System). The DOT will assemble a task force comprised of 25 to 30 representatives from industry and government groups to develop a registration process for drones and likely guidelines to what qualifies as a "drone." Obviously, inexpensive flying kid's toys will not have to register. The DOT hopes that forcing owners — many of whom are aviation novices — to register their drones with the government will at least make them think twice about their responsibility to fly safely and the possibility that they could be held accountable for an accident.

So here is the actual breakdown, because I have heard many rumors (logical and illogical) swimming around the UAS community in the past several days. Essentially, the DOT said that they, in the near future, will be able to digitally see unauthorized drones in congested and prohibited airspace. This likely means some type of enhanced radar. However, the problem with this type of policing is tracking down the operator of the drone once a drone has been identified as violating airport airspace or TFR (Temporary Flight Restriction) areas. They made it clear that this is the aim of the the new proposed regulations.

However, this is a NOT bad news. Many drone operators I have been speaking to are very upset that this is happening, but they shouldn't be. Do you flip out when register your car every year? This is a very large step towards the legitimacy of Commercial UAS Operations. It is also an admission by the DOT that they are unsatisfied with the FAA's capability and previous handling of drone regulation. Where this could get interesting is implementation. The US government is not known for effective implementation of new programs/task forces. The day to day effect on you will be next to nothing. You sign up, and then you are done. However, the macro effect on the UAS industry could be substantial in a great way!