NAAA last week issued a press release for the second annual National Drone Safety Awareness Week, reminding UAV users they share low-altitude airspace with manned agricultural aircraft and to follow the law and professional operating practices by keeping a safe distant and allowing manned aircraft the right of way.
National Drone Safety Awareness Week, spanning Nov. 16–22, is an FAA initiative to help educate the public on drone safety by highlighting safety initiatives across various fields including agriculture, commercial package delivery and hobbyists.
The press release reminded UAV users agricultural aviators fly as low as 10 feet off the ground at speeds up to 140 mph. For this reason, the NAAA asked UAV operators to be aware of their surroundings and do everything they can to avoid ag aircraft doing important low-altitude work.
As part of NAAA’s Drone Safety Awareness Week initiatives, NAAA CEO Andrew Moore discussed the association’s UAV safety recommendations on RFD-TV on Nov. 17. Moore joined “Market Day Report” host Janet Adkison by phone from NAAA’s headquarters in Virginia.
Adkison asked about how hard small drones are to spot while a pilots are flying (answer: “very difficult”), who has the right of way between a manned pilot and a drone (answer: “drone operators do have to give the right of way to manned aircraft”), and if there have been any collisions between a drone and an ag aircraft (answer: Yes, with an ag helicopter in Israel in 2018, but 13% of U.S. operators encountered a drone during ag aviation operations in 2020).
Adkison began by asking if there have been any close calls between a crop dusters and drones. (Answer: Yes, three close encounters in the past few years.) The host also asked about steps UAV operators should take to ensure they are operating safely and not putting others at risk. Throughout the 3½-minute segment, several points from NAAA’s UAV safety press release were included in graphics overlaying b-roll material. Viewers were also encouraged to visit AgAviation.org/uavsafetycampaign to learn more about safe operations of drones in agricultural areas. Watch the full interview in the video below.
To ensure the safety of low-altitude manned aircraft, NAAA recommends UAS operators:
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Always give the right-of-way to a manned aircraft. It’s the law.
- Equip drones with tracking technology, such as ADS-B, so other similarly equipped aircraft can ascertain their positions.
- Get certified and well-trained in operating a UAS.
- Contact local agricultural aviation operations before flying by consulting AgAviation.org/findapplicator.
- Equip UAS with visible strobe lights.
- Land your UAS immediately when a low-altitude manned aircraft is nearby.
- Carry UAS liability insurance.
NAAA is a member of the Unmanned Aviation Safety Team (UAST). NAAA posted a link to its drone safety materials available on the UAST’s Drone Safety Awareness Week website.
