Month: October 2012

U.S. Rep. Ted Poe, R-TX, chaired a Congressional hearing in Houston, TX to discuss proposed federal legislation intended to ensure unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) will not be used by government agencies for unwarranted surveillance or voyeuristic activity. Representatives from the law enforcement community and the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems […]

The “FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012” signed into law as Public Law 112-95 in February 2012, contains a “Special Rule for Model Aircraft”. The language in this provision instructs the FAA Administrator to not enact rules affecting model aircraft activity conducted within the safety programming of a nationwide […]

As reported by Central District News… SPD’s public display of their Draganflyer X6 Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (AKA “drone”) Thursday at Garfield Community Center was supposed to give people a chance to see the camera-toting remote-piloted helicopter in person and give residents the chance to ask questions about how it would […]

A team of participants from Rocket University is building a fuel cell-powered unmanned aerial vehicle and support systems to perform missions such as wildlife surveillance around the expansive Kennedy Space Center. Michael Dupuis previously worked on the space shuttles’ fuel cell systems and is now leading the unmanned aerial systems group’s […]

Members of Congress influential on aviation matters have asked an independent government watchdog to review whether the Federal Aviation Administration is making progress on meeting Congress’ mandate to develop a plan for managing the growth and integration of unmanned aircraft into the national airspace. In 2010 an FAA official reported […]

It’s a great question and the basic answer is yes… However… Aeromodeling enthusiasts have mounted cameras on their model aircraft for years and taken aerial photographs of the local flying site, their backyard and even themselves as they remotely operate their aircraft, and the ability to do so still exists […]

This is a very interesting question… the answer to which is not as simple as you might imagine. The issue of property/privacy rights vs. access to the public airways is extremely complicated. Over the years the decisions on this issue in state and federal courts have differed as new technologies […]

A Canberra team has won $10,000 for developing an un-manned aerial vehicle (UAV) which could help rescue stranded bushwalkers. Team Leader Stephen Dade and his team ‘Canberra UAV’ claimed first prize at the Outback Rescue Challenge after their UAV successfully located a dummy bushwalker. The team of 10 amateurs worked […]

For many years 14 CFR Part 91.141 has been used to separate airborne traffic from the President and the Vice President as they travel around the country. §91.141 states, “No person may operate an aircraft over or in the vicinity of any area to be visited or traveled by the President, […]

The Model Aeronautics Association of Canada (MAAC) has a long standing congenial and cooperative relationship with their Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), Transport Canada, perhaps even more so than our current relationship with the FAA. However, issues relating to airspace conflicts and model aircraft operations in proximity to airports are as […]