Aerospace Industries Association
FAA and USAF Chiefs to Discuss UAS Challenges at AIA Board Meeting
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| Air Force Secretary Michael Donley |
AIA will host an unprecedented high-level policy dialogue on the challenges and opportunities facing the emerging Unmanned Aircraft System industry. At AIA’s Board of Governors meeting Nov. 18 Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley and FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt will lead a discussion with commercial and defense UAS manufacturers on the issues facing future integration of UAS into our national airspace system.
While UAS are a growing and important part of military operations, they are still not certified to operate in U.S. civil airspace. Until standards are in place, many potentially useful civil UAS applications like fire fighting, search and rescue and law enforcement will go unrealized. The lack of regulatory guidance also severely inhibits manufacturers’ access to airspace for testing new technology.
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| FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt |
Recent organizational developments should improve the effort. FAA has reorganized its UAS program office, moving it from certification to standards within the safety division. Additionally, in an effort to coordinate and expedite integration, the Defense and Homeland Security Departments, FAA and NASA have organized an executive committee to align their efforts and leverage existing knowledge and experience from years of UAS defense operations.
AIA has been actively promoting UAS integration into the national airspace system, organizing industry efforts to assist FAA in this challenging task.
AIA Source: susan.mertes[at]aia-aerospace.org
