DOT/FAA Drone Reg Press Conference Live Stream

[SteveMann]

Easy to do, if they answer the phone!

If they don't answer the phone, call the local FSDO and tell them that:

I tried calling XYZ tower to provide them with notice of a small UAS flight x-miles from the airport pursuant to Section 336 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, but since they don't answer the phone, I am notifying you.

When they say that they "can't approve the flight", remind them that the law in Section 336 of the FMRA only requires that ATC be notified prior to the flight. You have been notified.

When they say "We aren't part of ATC", then ask for the phone number of the nearest ARTCC (Air Route Traffic Control Center).

 

[Guaymasjim]

This whole mess reminds me of an event years ago when I was an active duty Marine officer. On a day that was supposed to be secret we were all forced to pee in a cup for Corps wide "random drug testing." The cups have been in plain view for weeks--no secret. After everybody had peed, the cups were labeled and packed up to to shipped back to a lab on the East Coast. The boxes sat around for a couple of weeks and finally a truck came to pick them up. We learned later that the delay rendered the samples useless; and they were dumped. The only lesson learned was how to ship pee across the country. A colossal waste of time, money, and resources--not to mention a bio-hazard!

Aside from my comments above, I see these agencies as having underdeveloped solutions to a problem that doesn't exist. We all need to watch out for the unintended consequences that always surface as well as the actual text of the regulation when it is published. I fail to see how knowing that John and Sally Smith have a Phantom 3 along with their address and telephone number (I am assuming the latter) will be of any use other than another database for LEO. A database, by the way, that WILL be abused and hacked at sometime in the future-guaranteed.

After reviewing the incidents provided by Meta4 (thanks buddy!), it is obvious that the majority of the "sightings" quoted by the FAA are nothing more than that--sightings. Most of the pilots were doing absolutely nothing wrong! If I were seen unloading my Phantom out of my back seat, it would qualify as a "sighting" and go into the database as a negative. Pure BS! Correct me if I am mistaken, but a DJI Phantom 1, 2, or 3 cannot reach 15,000 feet if the owner wants it back after the flight. If the FAA actually completes its mission to have a registration protocol and regulations in place by the holidays, it will be a mishmash of crap particularly if it relies on the information in its published database which will create nothing but confusion, chaos, and confrontation.

I am still far from convinced that a 2.5-3# DJI UAV is capable of downing a 747 except in a precisely controlled test with very narrow parameters designed to predetermine the desired outcome. However, flying near airports without permission is not too smart; and a case could be made that a UAV pilot doing so would be recklessly endangering lives. We already have laws on the books to deal with that situation; so a jury would decide if the UAV pilot was reckless or reasonable.

I would be very interested in how countries other than the US are regulating UAVs.

Completely off the subject, several weeks ago a neighbor lost their new puppy and came door to door asking for help in finding it. I fired up my P2V+ went up to about 150 feet and started going up and down the local streets. Within a few minutes, I saw the frightened little dufuss "hiding" behind some shrubs. (He really has to work on his "blending in" skills!) The neighbors were so delighted that they offered me $100 for finding the pup. I refused their offer because I have lost pets before and know how heartbreaking it can be. My question is, "If I had accepted the $100 would I have immediately become a "commercial" user?"

I believe the answer is YES and stupid!

 

[Dronebow]

Lots of people have commented on the FAA database .. like this: Cloudy FAA data skews drone threat

The AMA released an official analysis that points out how flawed the FAA data is.
http://www.modelaircraft.org/gov/docs/AMAAnalysis-Closer-Look-at-FAA-Drone-Data_091415.pdf

Anyone can see for themselves that the FAA records are full of junk.
Here are just a few obvious ones from just 2 weeks. These are actual FAA database records.
Note the lack of important detail. These are what the FAA calls near-miss incidents and what they are using to whip up fear.
There's everything from flying dishwashers at 10K feet to $50 toys at the Washington Monument.
Very few real drones and even less genuine near miss incidents but the FAA feeds this crap to a hungry media with lines like:
Pilot reports of close calls with drones soar in 2015.
It's FAA manufactured hysteria.

All the scary talk about drone-aircraft interaction and FAA encouraging pilots to report is making pilots "see" a lot more drones than are really there.
Drones have become the new UFOs

Wow.. Obviously not DJI drones there..

 

[Chicago1]

After millions of dollars and 1 year in time, they come up with this? Nothing but a joke. Registration of guns works in downtown Chicago - right? WRONG! How stupid can they be. There is no way of tracing to a new owner - oh, I forgot, stupid me, the crook will register it. While people are starving in Chicago, we will spend million$ to make sure all 12 year old kids register their drone at Xmas time. I can't wait to fill the form out and send them a check! I guess the FAA does own all "air space" above the tips of your grass. I feel so much safer now - whew!

 

[Dronebow]

Make no mistake. This is nothing more than a money grab. The FAA will raise millions by making people register their drones. That's all it is. Use the media hype to create an income.

 

[n4uxy]

What if I build a drone from scratch and I don't register it or me? None of this is going to work 100%
The only thing I can see coming close to being 100% effective is make all RC transmitters so they won't turn on until they are registered with the RC Police. You call in your serial number and they give you a key to unlock the TX . Oh yes the TX will have to I.D. every 3 min and at the end of operation.
DRONES SHALL RULE THE WORLD!

 

[SteveMann]

Make no mistake. This is nothing more than a money grab. The FAA will raise millions by making people register their drones. That's all it is. Use the media hype to create an income.

It has nothing to do with money. The FAA is not a profit center in a corporation and if you think this is a money-grab then you don't understand how the US economy works.

 

[SteveMann]

After reviewing the incidents provided by Meta4 (thanks buddy!), it is obvious that the majority of the "sightings" quoted by the FAA are nothing more than that--sightings. Most of the pilots were doing absolutely nothing wrong!

One of them was a drone stuck in a tree. Big hazard, that report.

 

[Phoenix Outdoors]

It has nothing to do with money. The FAA is not a profit center in a corporation and if you think this is a money-grab then you don't understand how the US economy works.

The US economy doesn't work that's the thing. How The US economy works now is to see how far in debt a person can go.

 

[tracker_usmc]

They skirted almost every question and their only answer to a question was its for registration purposes. The last question was the best one IMO and he didn't even answer it because they know that just because a quadcopter is registered and they see it in the sky doesn't mean they know who is flying it. Typical political BS...answer the questions or don't have a press conference!

 

[Dronebow]

The US economy doesn't work that's the thing. How The US economy works now is to see how far in debt a person can go.

Right. And sorry, I still think there is a big pot that all the money goes into accessible to the US government. FAA drone registration means ~$50 per drone, as an example. So 1,000,000 drone owners go to the registration and sign up sending $50,000,000 to "somewhere" in the government. Maybe it doesn't go to the FAA but it's there somewhere... some government entity benefits from that money. I think it's not far fetched that it's a money grab because it doesn't seem that most drone claims are even correct and I would think an FAA committee could see through that.