Great article in Flying magazine by John King on… Risk Management Vs Safety. The article is written for manned aviation; however, the principles equally apply to MA.
Continue readingPossible Threats to GPS Flight
FCC grants LightSquared an extension on its report on the threat its new wireless broadband network might pose to GPS operations….What does this mean for UAS?
Continue readingDetails of WWII Bomber Force Landing
On June 13th the media reported a “WWII bomber (the Liberty Belle) crashes, bursts into flames” in Oswego, IL. The photo to the left is the photo released by the media that millions saw. The photo on the right is the photo taken by the crew and passengers after a safe forced landing and egress from the A/C.
Continue readingWhere do they go from here… ?
This is where MA and AMA shine bright. AMA is working directly with EAA in a partnership program that will tie EAA Young Eagles to AMA’s educational programs and our local clubs. Interested? Contact AMA Education Director, Bill Pritchett, at: billp@modelaircraft.org for more details…
Continue readingAMA’s host city newspaper weighs in
The Muncie StarPress, AMA’s host city newspaper weighs in… Click the link below to read an article, editorial and related comments on the AMA, model aviation and government regulations.
Continue readingNational spotlight getting bright on Model Aviation and FAA’s proposed sUAS regulation
Aeromodeling, AMA, and the FAA were subjects of a couple high profile international publications including today’s front-page Wall Street Journal, and a more troubling article on FPV in the latest issue of the Smithsonian Air & Space Magazine.
Continue readingsUAS Rulemaking Updates
On May 12th representatives of FAA’s Unmanned Aircraft Program Office (UAPO) attended the Joe Nall fly-in at the Triple Tree Aerodrome and met with the attendees at the AMA annual meeting. For the most part they appeared very impressed with the professional manner in which the event was conducted and the level of safety achieved at the various venues and concurrent MA operations.
Continue readingCongress Reconvenes to Complete the FAA Re-Authorization Act
After a two week spring break, Congress reconvenes this week and will take up the work of completing the FAA Re-Authorization Act. Both the Senate Bill (S. 223) and the House Bill (H.R. 658) have passed their respective houses and have been sent to Conference Committee for reconciliation. The Senate has officially called for a conference on the legislation and has named its conferees. The House is expected to respond to the request this week. The AMA remains hopeful that the model aviation exemption provided in the Senate version of the bill will be accepted and moved into the final bill.
Continue readingConference Committee to Consider Language to Protect Model Aircraft
The political process of creating legislation is more of an art than a science, and the fact that H.R. 658 does not include an exemption for model aviation (MA) does not necessarily mean there wasn’t support for such an amendment. Quite honestly there is a significant amount of backing in the House for our issues, and numerous Representatives have come forward with pledges of support and offers to assist in protecting MA from onerous regulation.
Continue readingHouse approves (H.R. 658)
No April Fools…
Yesterday, 4/1, the House voted 223-196 to approve the FAA Reauthorization and Reform Act (H.R. 658). The bill would reauthorize the FAA’s operations and programs for four years, at an overall funding level of $59.7 billion. The House bill essentially rolls back FAA spending authorization to 2008 levels. The House bill does not include an amendment mirroring the one included in S. 223 which exempts modeling activity conducted in accordance with a community-based set of guidelines from regulation.
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