The New York Times interviewed NAAA Executive Director
Andrew Moore for a recent article exploring the burgeoning market for UAVs in
the farming sector. The Association
for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International expects agriculture to make up 80
percent of the market for commercial UAVs once the FAA approves regulations for
small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS).
Moore stated that NAAA isn’t opposed to the use of
UAVs by farmers, but the FAA’s proposed rules are too lax. At present, the
agency is calling for sUAS operators to pass a written knowledge test. NAAA has
petitioned the FAA to require UAV operators to possess a pilot’s license and mandate
that UAVs be equipped with strobe lighting to make them more visible to manned
aircraft. Per the New York Times: “[Moore]
is worried about pilots crashing into drones, which can look like specks until
it is too late. ‘It could be lethal,’ he said.”
The Times piece,“Farmers Flying Drones May Soon Be Given Clearance,” begins by spotlighting a Colorado farmer who is
violating the FAA’s existing ban on the commercial use of UAVs without a
special exemption. For farmer Jean Hediger, the ability to remotely monitor
crops in her field—now—exceeds the risk of being penalized by the FAA for
ignoring its ban. Receiving a “stiff email urging compliance,” one of the
possible sanctions, does little to strike fear in the heart. And while violators
of the commercial UAV ban could be fined up to $27,500, no farmers have been
fined to date, an FAA spokesperson told the New
York Times. The problem with this, Moore observed, is that rogue drone
fliers could “put a black eye onto this whole industry.” The full article is
available here.
