WP: FAA- Now More Registered UAV Aircraft than Registered Manned Aircraft

[Mark The Droner]

The following article was found in this morning's Washington Post print edition and online:

FAA: More registered drone operators than registered planes

The Federal Aviation Administration says there are now more registered drone operators in the United States than there are registered manned aircraft.

FAA Administrator Michael Huerta told a legal forum on Monday that the agency passed the milestone last week when it topped 325,000 registered drone owners. There are 320,000 registered manned aircraft.

Huerta said the number of small unmanned aircraft is even larger because drone operators often own more than one drone.

...

FAA: More registered drone operators than registered manned aircraft

 

[CactusJackSlade]

Good current info... but is there any surprise here?.... going all the way down to 250 grams/.55 lbs covers a lot of r/c aircraft...

 

[Rothgarr]

The following article was found in this morning's
Huerta said the number of small unmanned aircraft is even larger because drone operators often own more than one drone...

Wait... I thought one single registration covers ALL the "drones" you own? Wouldn't that make that statement false?

 

[J.James]

Wait... I thought one single registration covers ALL the "drones" you own? Wouldn't that make that statement false?

yes one reg covers all the drones some one has so if any thing that would make the statement true that there would be more drones then there are registered drone owners being that many people have more then 1 drone tho only needed to register once.

Tho these numbers of registrants are not all drone owners being that out of a strange form of protest many other groups signed up while it was free just to clog up the system such as many ham operators and many gun right group members also registered them selves even if they do not own any drones. as a way of showing solidarity with us drone owners. As well as to make the faa think they have more registered drone pilot voters then there might really be.

Tho I wonder out of the ones that really do own unmaned aircraft what the average number of craft would be that every one owns.. I my self and down to only 2 now tho at one point in time I had 4 different phantoms.

 

[Apilot101]

Washington Compost .... need not say more.

 

[N017RW]

yes one reg covers all the drones some one has so if any thing that would make the statement true that there would be more drones then there are registered drone owners being that many people have more then 1 drone tho only needed to register once.

Tho these numbers of registrants are not all drone owners being that out of a strange form of protest many other groups signed up while it was free just to clog up the system such as many ham operators and many gun right group members also registered them selves even if they do not own any drones. as a way of showing solidarity with us drone owners. As well as to make the faa think they have more registered drone pilot voters then there might really be.

Tho I wonder out of the ones that really do own unmaned aircraft what the average number of craft would be that every one owns.. I my self and down to only 2 now tho at one point in time I had 4 different phantoms.

What a bunch of B.S... Solidarity???

Flame me if you will just make sure you include a reference to the highlighted statements.

 

[GoodnNuff]

What a bunch of B.S... Solidarity???

Flame me if you will just make sure you include a reference to the highlighted statements.

I had to laugh at that post. I'd also like to see some evidence of this "solidarity" and an explanation of why?

 

[Mark The Droner]

Here's a letter to the editor published in this morning's Post:

It’s not enough for the FAA to make drone operators register

...

Did the FAA take the opportunity to educate any of these 325,000 drone operators on safe operation of drones in national airspace? Did the FAA do anything to reduce the incidence of drones interfering with manned aircraft? The answer to both is a stunning no. The taxpayers got an additional FAA bureaucracy to manage the 325,000 drone-operator registrations and collect a $5 fee. The flying public got zilch as far as any improvement to safety.

...

What??? Does this guy live in a cave? He claims to be a "pilot." A pilot of what?

I have to wonder where all this negativity is coming from. The Post also didn't bother to publish anything about the FAA's change of stance on the DC SFRA as it applies to UAVs. Why? Then I remembered: The Post is owned by Jeff Bezos who also owns Amazon and who apparently wants to further segregate UAV airspace to promote his own package delivery service.

 

[J.James]

What a bunch of B.S... Solidarity???

Flame me if you will just make sure you include a reference to the highlighted statements.

I dont really understand it my self or really get why any one else who dont have a drone would even care. esp any of the gun rights people who also seem up in arms about the reg thing esp when most of them are the same people that any other day hate drones and always think some ones going to be spying on them with one and wanting to start blasting a gun in the air. Usually right after they get done saying what responsible gun owners they are to. lol