Wynne Calls for Rapid Release of Small UAS Rule
Finalizing the rule for small unmanned aircraft will unleash greater creativity and economic benefit, AUVSI President and CEO Brian Wynne told members of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship on Thursday.
AUVSI analyzed the first 3,000 commercial use exemptions approved by the Federal Aviation Administration and found that they are from businesses in more than 35 industries, representing nearly 1.2 million jobs.
“These companies contributed about $900 billion to the U.S. economy in 2015 and provide essential services to citizens across the nation,” Wynne said.
However, the current Section 333 exemption process is still burdensome and can actually still serve as a deterrent to commercial use, Wynne said, so the small UAS rule is needed, not just to allow more flights, but to keep states and localities from passing their own regulations.
“In addition to helping the UAS industry thrive, putting the small UAS rule in place will provide the necessary tools and training to create a culture of safety around the use of UAS,” Wynne said.
Several committee members noted that some other countries are moving faster than the U.S. is when it comes to integration.
Capt. Tim Canoll, president of the Air Line Pilots Association, said ALPA supports UAS integration but wants it done safely.
“ALPA supports robust development of this technology with one single overriding condition: Integration of UAS into the NAS [National Airspace System] must be done safely, deliberately, thoughtfully, with full understanding of the possible risks also being introduced, and most importantly, with simultaneous development of effective mitigations for those risks,” Canoll said.
Running counter to what’s expected to be in the small UAS rule, Canoll said ALPA feels that any UAS flown for commercial purposes should be operated by a licensed pilot.
Eli Dourado, director of the Technology Policy Program at George Mason University, said his research has turned up little actual risk from small UAS flights.
“We estimate that a drone is likely to collide with other aircraft about once every 374,000 years of continuous operation,” he said.
He noted that the Internet didn’t become used commercially until the late 1980s, but when it did it created a wave of innovation that continues to today.
“We must, to the maximum extent possible, treat airspace with a very light regulatory touch,” Dourado said. “I urge every member of this committee to set aside the fearmongering that accompanies every new technology and embrace the possibilities for innovation and economic growth that commercial drones provide.”
