Debate and controversy over the social, political and cultural issues surrounding the deployment of UAS in the national airspace continues to heat up… and is hitting the mainstream media. Read the latest Article in USA Today: Domestic use of drones? Bad idea…
Continue readingUAS Debate Heats Up…
The debate over the use of unmanned aircraft in our civil airspace is heating up as privacy advocates call for a ban on the use of “Drones”. In the wake of FAA’s announced ease on UAS controls allowing public agencies to start flying in the national airspace, renewed concerns over […]
Continue readingFAA Eases UAS Controls Allowing Public Agencies to Begin Flying Unmanned Aircraft
FAA has established new streamlined policies and procedures for applying for and issuing Certificates of Authorization (COA) for public agencies, allowing them to operate unmanned aircraft up to 25lbs. In compliance with Public Law 112-95, as of May 14th, law enforcement agencies, fire departments and other public entities will be […]
Continue readingDWI Charges Against Former FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt Dismissed
Drunk driving charges against former FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt were dismissed Thursday, May 10th. Fairfax City Court Judge Ian O’Flaherty ruled that Mr. Babbit was stopped on a mere hunch that he might be under the influence. Video from the police officer’s patrol car revealed there was no sign of […]
Continue readingModel Aircraft are not Drones
Recently, the AMA posted a blog post featuring comments from AMA President Bob Brown, in response to an op-ed piece in the Los Angeles Times. The editorial proposed that drone proliferation by amateurs in the National Airspace System (NAS) raises an issue that has received too little attention: the threat […]
Continue readingAMA President, Bob Brown, Responds to LA Times Op Ed Piece
In the March 27, 2012’s edition of the Los Angeles Times, John Villasenor, UCLA professor, contributed an Op-Ed piece with the suggestion that drone proliferation raises an issue that has received too little attention: the threat that they could be used to carry out terrorist attacks. AMA President, Bob […]
Continue readingPresident Obama Nominates Michael Huerta to 5-year Term
Yesterday the White House announced President Barack Obama’s nomination of Michael Huerta, interim chief of the FAA, to a full five-year term as the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration. In December 2011, then Deputy Administrator Huerta was appointed as the interim administrator of the FAA when Randy Babbitt resigned […]
Continue readingsUAS NPRM Release Date Slips Again…
According to a recent update on DOT’s Rulemaking Webpage the projected publication date for the small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) has been pushed back to July 2012. Though this has not yet been confirmed by the FAA Unmanned Aircraft Program Office (UAPO), sources close to […]
Continue readingPrivacy Rights Groups Fight FAA
Read Full Article Debate heats up over privacy rights as Congress compels the FAA to provide UAS access to the national airspace. A number of privacy groups have petitioned the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on the proposed increase in the use of aerial drones in the United States. More than […]
Continue readingVideo: AMA Government Relations Presentation at 2012 Efest
This briefing was presented on Saturday, February 11th, three days before President Obama signed the FAA Modernization and Reform Act into law. Though this law goes a long way towards protecting model aviation from regulation it should not be viewed as a total exemption from regulatory oversight. The FAA will […]
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