I always seem to be in a remote location with limited access to the internet whenever important news breaks. Of course, today’s release of Part 107 was expected. It was also expected that there would be few surprises, but there are some things that are worth noting:
While the altitude restriction is 400 ft AGL as opposed to 500 ft, you can fly higher if you are within 400 feet of a taller structure. This makes sense when considering the number of drones that will be used for things like cellphone tower inspections.
The FAA will create a portal to apply for waivers of restrictions.
The FAA is creating a new certification, called “Remote Pilot Airman” certificate. The good news is that the operator does not need to have the certificate as long as he is operating under the direct supervision of someone who does. We are waiting to see what the aeronautical knowledge test will consist of.
While the FAA concedes that it does not regulate privacy issues, it intends to come out with some “best practices” on privacy. It remains to be seen what those will be.
Of course, once the rule goes into effect, a Section 333 exemption will no longer be necessary to comply with what the FAA says is required to operate commercially.
For regular updates and commentary, on Part 107 and on other matters, follow us on Twitter at @dronelawdotcom.
We will be at AUVSI’s Unmanned Systems 2015 conference in Atlanta, May 4-7. Look for our (very small) booth at the trade show and stop by to say ‘Hello’!
The Raphael Pirker case has settled. Not terribly surprising, given the appellate ruling. Pirker had little incentive to continue defending the case. He agreed to a reduced fine of $1,100, with no admission of wrongdoing.
The FAA might be feeling like the more fortunate party in this transaction:
In a letter Pirker shared with me, a judge with the National Transportation Safety Board asked the agency why, essentially, it was putting a foreign national through the ringer for a relatively minor (and legally unclear) infraction. The FAA is allowed to take legal enforcement action against foreign nationals in three circumstances: The person has an FAA airman’s certificate; the person commits a violation as a passenger; or the person runs a “foreign repair station.” Otherwise, the FAA is supposed to refer the case to the person’s home country, in this case, Switzerland. The FAA didn’t do that.
Pirker “does not fall within the three circumstances that provide for taking of legal enforcement action … it is determined that this issue is best addressed, and appropriately resolved, prior to commencing a hearing,” the judge wrote.
[Pirker’s attorney Brendan] Schulman said that’s another reason why the FAA should be happy to put this behind them.
The allegedly offending video can be viewed, here:
Thus ends a very interesting regulatory dispute. It won’t be the last.
Drone operators in South Africa have been cooling their heels, waiting for regulations allowing commercial drone operations from the South Africa Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA). Based on this report, it looks like their wait will soon be over. In what would constitute a lightning-fast rules process in the U.S., South Africa went from proposed rules, issued in December, to the close of comments just over two weeks ago. The regulations are supposed to be finalized by the end of January, and will hopefully become law by April-May of this year.
The draft regulations would require aircraft to be licensed and registered and pilots/operators to undergo training to qualify them to fly the aircraft. Someone would only be able to fly a remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) if they have an RPA Pilot License, an RPA Operator Certificate, a certificate of RPA registration and an RPA Letter of Approval.
Importantly, RPAs will be classified according to their mass, kinetic energy and type of operation (line of sight, beyond line of sight etc.), with ten classes ranging from Class 1A to Class 5 and with masses ranging from less than 1.5 kg to greater than 150 kg.
The draft regulations apply to class 1 and 2 RPAs (up to 120 kg). Private operations of RPAs will be conducted only in restricted visual line of sight with a Class 1A or 1B RPA (up to 7 kg). However, operating a UAV as a hobbyist falls under different regulations.
The proposed categories for pilots is interesting:
For anyone in South Africa with a UAV, there are three options to fly legally: one can apply for a license if pursuing commercial work (once the regulations are finalised); one can become a member of the South African Model Aircraft Association (SAMAA) if flying as a hobbyist; or one can fly as a ‘park flyer’.
Great work for SAMAA. We believe that the following applies to those seeking to do commercial work:
Someone would only be able to pilot an RPA once in possession of a Remote Pilot License (RPL) in one of three categories: RPL (A) – Aeroplane Remote Pilot License; RPL (H) – Helicopter Remote Pilot License; and RPL (MR) – Multirotor Remote Pilot License. Several ratings are available including visual line of sight operations (VLOS), extended visual line of sight operations (E-VLOS) and beyond visual line of sight operations (B-VLOS).
The License would test things like air law, meteorology, navigation, aerodynamics, propulsion, flight control, batteries etc. Flight training can be a combination of simulator and real aircraft training and would cover things like aircraft inspection, systems checks, flight control/manoeuvres, takeoff, landing etc.
In other words, the SACAA isn’t taking a one-size-fits-all approach to licensing and, unlike the FAA, apparently won’t require pilots to be licensed to fly manned aircraft.
The flight rules get a little more complicated:
For commercial, corporate and non-profit flight operations, an operator would be required to have an RPA Operator Certificate (ROC – valid for 12 months) or air services license, which can only be granted if the operator has a registered aircraft, an operations manual and an RLA. ROC holders would have background and criminal record checks conducted and would have to have third party insurance.
For private use, RPAs would only be flown in restricted visual line of sight (within 500 metres of the pilot) and over property the pilot owns or has permission to operate over.
With regard to operating an RPA, under the draft regulations an aircraft would only be operated in controlled airspace by a holder of an ROC or if the RPA is flown in visual meteorological conditions in an air traffic zone (ATZ) and controlled traffic region (CTR) below 400 feet. RPAs intended for operations within an ATZ or CTR would have to be fitted with a mode C or S transponder, altimeter, strobe light/s and navigation lights.
Did we say that the operations rules get a little complicated? Scrolling through the proposed regulations, one finds nuggets like this:
First aid kits
101.05.24 (1) No owner or operator of an RPA shall operate the aircraft unless a first aid kit consisting of the medical supplies … for manned aircraft is available within the remote pilot station and within 300 m of the takeoff and landing points. . . .
(2) The owner or operator shall carry out periodical inspections of the first aid kit to ensure that, as far as practicable, the contents thereof are in a condition necessary for their intended use.
(3) The contents of the first aid kit shall be replenished at regular intervals, in accordance with instructions contained on their labels, or as circumstances require.
(4) The first aid kit shall be readily accessible to all crew members involved in the operation.
Hand-held fire extinguishers
101.05.25 No owner or operator of an RPA shall operate the RPA unless –
(a) a hand-held fire extinguisher is available in the remote pilot station and within 300 m of the takeoff and landing points;
(b) a hand-held fire extinguisher suitable for use with electronic equipment and any power generating equipment in use is available in the remote pilot station; and
(c) a hand-held fire extinguisher suitable for use on the RPA is available within 300 m of the takeoff and landing points.
Good Lord.
As one might imagine, South African officials are concerned about a lack of personnel to implement these regulations, once they become law. Such a dilemma is the natural result of a regulatory regime that, while sensible on some levels, is still going to be grossly inefficient and difficult to administer.
We give this proposed set of drone regulations a C+.
to conduct aerial videography and cinematography to enhance academic community awareness for those individuals and companies unfamiliar with the geographical layout of the metro Tucson area and augment real estate listing videos.
From there, the document consists of 26 pages of mind-numbing bureaucrat-speak and absurdities that would have given Vaclav Havel a chuckle. For example, the petitioner asked for relief from the requirement of having a private or commercial pilot’s license. The FAA’s response:
Regarding the petitioner’s requested relief from 14 CFR 61.113(a) and (b), Private pilot privileges and limitations, the petitioner requested regulatory relief to operate his UAS without an FAA-certificated pilot. In support of his request, the petitioner states that “while helpful, a pilot license will not ensure remote control piloting skills.” However, the FAA does not possess the authority to exempt the petitioner from the statutory requirement to hold an airman certificate, as prescribed in 49 USC § 44711 [Ed. – prohibiting a person from serving “in any capacity as an airman . . . without an airman certificate authorizing the airman to serve in the capacity for which the certificate was issued….”].Although Section 333 provides limited statutory flexibility relative to 49 USC § 44704 for the purposes of airworthiness certification, it does not provide similar flexibility relative to other sections of Title 49.
So, apparently the FAA has discretion to disregard section 44711 if you’re a hobbyist, but not if you’re a commercial operator. Yes, we know about the hobbyist exception under FMRA, but this takes statutory construction to an absurd level. The FAA doesn’t stop there:
Unlike operations pursuant to public COAs, the FAA is also requiring a pilot certificate for UAS operations for two reasons, the first of which is to satisfy the statutory requirements as stated above. The second is because pilots holding an FAA issued private or commercial pilot certificate are subject to the security screening by the Department of Homeland Security that certificated airmen undergo. As previously determined by the Secretary of Transportation, the requirement to have an airman certificate ameliorates security concerns over civil UAS operations conducted in accordance with Section 333.
Um, why not simply require a background check? Not that we think it should be necessary, but we trust non-pilots with Global Entry cards. The background check requirements are at least as rigorous. The FAA then considers the objections of the Airline Pilots Association [We didn’t see that coming! – Ed.], but finds that a commercial pilot’s license should not be necessary. Various commenters have pointed to numerous other absurdities, and we do not have time to explore them all in detail. But most absurd of all is the amount of resources that has gone into drafting, submitting, and reviewing one petition from an individual who wishes to operate his Phantom 2 for commercial purposes. This is not only an absurd way to go about things; it is horribly wasteful and raises impossible barriers to entry for many thousands of potential entrepreneurs. There has got to be a better way.
Some interesting themes emerged from this hearing. Everyone seemed to recognize that the U.S. is falling behind on R&D and investment due to the lack of a comprehensive regulatory framework.
Several of the committee members raised questions over whether the FAA should, like other developed countries, pursue a more risk-based approach to UAS regulations. The FAA’s Peggy Gilligan claimed that her agency is doing just that, at least when evaluating section 333 exemption applications. This was telling. Most of her remarks smacked of happy talk and filibustering.
Rep. Todd Rokita asked, if we are taking a risk-based approach, whether any actuarial studies have been conducted. The answer was yes, but only as to large, high-altitude UAS. There were too many unknowns to be able to evaluate risk profiles for smaller drones.
Another interesting theme was the general frustration with the fact that the much-heralded test sites are not getting much support from the FAA. Some spoke of opening up more test sites. Jesse Kallman of Airware suggested that developers be permitted to operate their own test sites. This made sense to us.
Capt. Lee Moak of the Airline Pilots Association began his testimony by putting a brand new DJI Phantom on the table. He compared the risk of collision with small drones to the risk of bird strikes. His testimony made it clear that the airline pilots are lobbying for a go-slow approach. In other words, the FAA might not be aggressive enough in trying to shut this madness down.
The overall impression was that Congress understands the problem and is losing patience with the FAA. We might see more legislative involvement if things don’t start picking up speed.
I’ve heard from a lot of aerial photographers about how the FAA’s bullying tactics are seriously hurting – if not outright killing – their ability to make a living.
If you have an FAA horror story, please share in the comments.
