Drones used to be a regular fixture in our headlines and not for very positive reasons.
If you will recall a couple of holiday seasons back, drones shut down air traffic at Gatwick, one of the United Kingdom’s busiest airports, and that pretty much served as the capstone of a year filled with random goings-on with drones and careless pilots doing things they shouldn’t.
Naturally, you guys told us in the comments then that more regulations would be coming around the bend since no one can seem to play nice and you were right.
The Federal Aviation Administration in the United States just released its rules for drone pilots and operators and it probably represents one of the largest moves in that country to regulate the heretofore lightly drone aviation sector. Among the requirements introduced are a new remote ID system as well as a clearer picture of when drones can operate at night and under what conditions.
As PetaPixel describes, the remote ID requirement, one long expected, is sort of like a digital license plate for your drone. Its purpose, as outlined by the FAA, is “to address aviation safety and security issues regarding Unmanned Aircraft (UA) operations in the National Airspace System, and is an essential building block towards safely allowing more complex UA operations.”
In terms of nighttime flying, the FAA rules stipulate a new training course for drone pilots to take in order to fulfill their requirements in this area. They’ve also described a variety of conditions and what is and is not permissible in their new guidelines. One thing that has not changed is the very tough restrictions on flying drones near lanes of traffic and moving vehicles. That will remain something that is very limited if ever allowed.
You can check out the new regulations here for yourself.
What do you think of the FAA’s rules for drone operators? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
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