Significant job growth and broader application of commercial small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) are on the horizon if newly proposed FAA rules are adopted, according to Dr. Brent Terwilliger, program chair of Embry-Riddle Worldwide’s Master of Science in Unmanned Systems.
On Sunday, the FAA released its much-anticipated proposed rules for commercial use of small UAS. The proposed rules limit flights to daylight and visual-line-of-sight operations. They also address height restrictions, operator certification, optional use of a visual observer, aircraft registration and marking, and operational limits.
The weekend announcement comes after recent reports of several small UAS entering commercial aircraft airspace and a drone crashing at the White House last month.
President Barack Obama also contributed to the UAS conversation on Sunday when he issued a presidential memorandum to promote economic competitiveness while safeguarding privacy, civil rights and civil liberties in domestic use of unmanned aircraft systems.
“As UAS are integrated into the NAS, the Federal Government will take steps to ensure that the integration takes into account not only our economic competitiveness and public safety, but also the privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties concerns these systems may raise,” the memorandum stated.
According to Dr. Terwilliger, the FAA’s proposed rules have been in the works since 2008 when the small aviation rule-making committee was first established. Additional analysis is needed to determine if the proposed rules address all necessary issues.
Dr. Terwilliger said the FAA has asked stakeholders to provide feedback for the overall rules and three specific areas. One of those areas is related to exemptions for the transportation of goods for payment – a scenario that companies like Amazon and UPS have explored.
Stakeholders are not the only ones who will be analyzing the potential impact of the FAA’s announcement. Dr. Terwilliger plans to integrate the proposed rules into his coursework in the Master of Science in Unmanned Systems.
“It’s actually very exciting,” he said of Sunday’s announcement. “It provides a whole new source of material.”
The evolving small UAS regulatory environment is something Worldwide’s College of Aeronautics faculty has planned for all along.
“We have designed our courses and the associated projects and activities to be very flexible, knowing that the UAS regulatory environment is subject to significant dynamic influences,” Dr. Terwilliger said.
He added that the proposed rules will greatly benefit students by calling for a much more flexible, less restraining means to access airspace and implement innovative concepts and technology that otherwise has been highly restricted.
“Students will be able to conceptualize new applications, develop new systems and technology, and gain access to the actual airspace to investigate, test, and analyze their research,” Dr. Terwilliger said.
Read one student's thoughts about the proposed rules and their implications. Learn more today about Embry-Riddle Worldwide’s Master of Science in Unmanned Systems and professional education short courses.http://worldwide.erau.edu/newsroom/press-releases/job-growth-greater-application-of-small-uas.html
No comments:
Post a Comment