Tag: aircraft
Recreational Drones Will Need To Be Registered, FAA Says

Recreational Drones Will Need To Be Registered, FAA Says

By Linda Loyd, The Philadelphia Inquirer (TNS)

PHILADELPHIA — Just in time for the holidays, when thousands of drones will be received as gifts, the Federal Aviation Administration announced Monday that recreational pilots and hobbyists must register all drones weighing between 0.55 pounds and 55 pounds, including on-board cameras, by Feb. 19, 2016.

Anyone flying a drone, or unmanned aircraft, for recreational purposes after that date will face a civil penalty up to $27,500 and potential criminal charges, including a fine up to $250,000 and three years in prison, the agency said.

The registration fee is $5, but the FAA said it will waive the fee for the first 30 days, between Dec. 21 and Jan. 20, to encourage participation.

Drone fliers will be asked to provide their name, home, address, and email address. The online application will generate a certificate of aircraft registration/proof of ownership that will include a unique identification number, which must be marked on the drone.

Registration begins Dec. 21, and covers civilian pilots and hobbyists, but not folks who operate drones for commercial purposes. The FAA said it will begin online registration of drones operated for commercial purposes sometime next spring, but did not give a specific date.

Unmanned aircraft owners can register by mail, or the Web at www.faa.gov/uas/registration, and must be at least 13 years old, the FAA said.

“Make no mistake: unmanned aircraft enthusiasts are aviators, and with that title comes a great deal of responsibility,” said Department of Transportation secretary Anthony Foxx. “Registration gives us an opportunity to work with these users to operate their unmanned aircraft safely.”

Drone hobbyists with more than one model aircraft will have to register only once, and can use the same identification number for all their model unmanned aircraft. The registration is valid for three years, the FAA said.

“We expect hundreds of thousands of model unmanned aircraft will be purchased this holiday season,” said FAA Administrator Michael Huerta. “Registration gives us the opportunity to educate these new airspace users before they fly so they know the airspace rules and understand they are accountable to the public for flying responsibly.”

©2015 The Philadelphia Inquirer. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Photo: FireFlight UAS unmanned aerial vehicles TwinHawk, Scout, Flanker, and Hawkeye 400, are displayed on the tarmac during “Black Dart”, a live-fly, live fire demonstration of 55 unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, at Naval Base Ventura County Sea Range, Point Mugu, near Oxnard, California July 31, 2015. REUTERS/Patrick T. Fallon

 

California’s Air Tanker Fleet Grounded After Deadly Yosemite Crash

California’s Air Tanker Fleet Grounded After Deadly Yosemite Crash

By Joseph Serna, Los Angeles Times

All of California’s 22 S-2T air tankers have been grounded after one of the aircraft crashed while fighting a wildfire in Yosemite National Park, killing the sole pilot.
Most of the tankers haven’t been in use recently, as the large wildfires that raced across the central and northern parts of the state this summer have largely been brought under control. But the fleet will remain grounded until deemed safe by officials, Daniel Berlant, a spokesman for the state Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, said Wednesday.
California is one of a handful of states to maintain a fleet of firefighting planes. The S-2T tankers, which can carry up to 1,200 gallons of retardant, are essentially old Navy aircraft that were retrofitted “from nose to tail,” including with turbine prop engines that were added in the 1990s, he said.
The tanker that crashed Tuesday was among a handful of aircraft fighting the 130-acre Dog Rock fire, which broke out that afternoon on El Portal Road between the Yosemite’s boundary and the Arch Rock entrance station, officials said.
Debris from the crash was scattered on Highway 140, which was closed because of the blaze.
“This is obviously a very tragic situation, this pilot was one of our family,” Berlant said.
The pilot’s family has requested his name not be released until all immediate family has been notified, officials said.
Berlant said the pilot worked for DynCorp International, which also maintains Cal Fire’s planes.
A representative for DynCorp reached by The LA Times early Wednesday had no immediate comment.
The cause of the crash was under investigation, but it was clear and not too windy at the time the crash, Berlant said.
A California Highway Patrol officer who witnessed the explosion told the Associated Press that the air tanker appeared to hit a canyon wall while attempting to make a drop.
“I heard a large explosion, I looked up on the steep canyon wall and saw aircraft debris was actually raining down the side of the mountain after the impact,” said CHP Sgt. Chris Michael, who was stopping traffic along the highway when the plane went down.
“It hit the steep side of the canyon wall,” he added. “It appeared from the direction he was going, he was trying to make a drop down the side of the canyon when he hit the canyon wall.”
By Tuesday night, rescuers had climbed to the wreckage, which was perched on a 2,500-foot escarpment near El Portal.
Michael said pieces of the aircraft landed on the highway and came close to hitting fire crews on the ground nearby.
“It most definitely did disintegrate on impact,” he said. “It was nothing. I didn’t see anything but small pieces.”
Staff writers Adolfo Flores and Julie Cart contributed to this report.

AFP Photo/Mike Mcmillan

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‘Near Midair Collision’ At Newark Airport Recounted By NTSB

‘Near Midair Collision’ At Newark Airport Recounted By NTSB

By Michael Muskal, Los Angeles Times

Two aircraft, one landing and the other taking off, came within just hundreds of yards of colliding with each other at New Jersey’s Newark Liberty Airport last month, according to a preliminary federal report that describes a far more dire picture of the incident than had been thought.

The National Transportation Safety Board report describes the April 24 incident as “a near midair collision,” of a United flight carrying 155 passengers and six crew members from San Francisco and an ExpressJet with 47 passengers and three crew members bound for Memphis.

The required distance between such jets is two miles horizontally but the planes were about 200 feet apart — about two-thirds of a football field. Vertically they were separated by 400 feet.

It was about 3 p.m. EDT at the northeast corner of the well-trafficked airport in New Jersey. Two north-south runways cross Runway 29, an east-west runway.

According to the NTSB preliminary report, an air traffic controller waited for another plane to land on the east-west runway, then cleared the ExpressJet to take off heading north.

At that point, the United flight, coming in to Runway 29, was about three miles away. By the time the ExpressJet flight started its takeoff, the United flight was about one mile off.

As the two planes approached each other, the incoming United flight was ordered by the tower to abort its landing and go back up.

The ExpressJet pilot can be heard on radio telling air traffic controllers he was keeping the plane’s nose down as he climbed. At one point he tells the tower the United flight came “real close” to him.

There was no damage to either aircraft or any injuries, according to the NTSB.

A final report on the incident is expected to take months.

Shyb via Flickr

Drones Now Doing Business In The Skies Above You

Drones Now Doing Business In The Skies Above You

By Tony Bizjak, The Sacramento Bee

Drones, once known as weapons of war, are undergoing a dramatic makeover as a hot new business tool in the sky. But, as with unmanned military craft, domestic drones are prompting concerns over safety and privacy.

No agency tracks how many drones are now buzzing overhead. But it’s likely hundreds a day hit the skies nationally on commercial missions, equipped with video cameras and launched by entrepreneurs looking for faster, cheaper and easier ways to provide services.

Lightweight drones, some hardly bigger than a Frisbee, shoot dramatic bird’s-eye videos of ski races and outdoor weddings. They provide aerial footage for car commercials and real estate promotions.

The new breed of small domestic drones — known more formally as “unmanned aviation systems” or “remotely piloted aircraft” — can sell for $1,000 to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on size and sophistication. Users say operating the remote-controlled, spider-like craft costs far less than hiring a helicopter or plane, and allows users to fly into tight spaces, including indoors.

“Drones are the future of aviation,” said Patrick Egan, a Sacramento, Calif.-based consultant and an advocate for unmanned commercial craft. “It is already here. They are around you. And they are flying and doing jobs; you just weren’t aware of them.”

There is a hitch, though: Federal policy prohibits the commercial use of drones. The Federal Aviation Administration requires that commercial flights use certified aircraft and licensed pilots. Low-altitude use of drones by hobbyists is allowed, as are some research projects that use the technology.

That commercial ban appears to be only temporary. Congress has given the FAA until September 2015 to write an initial set of rules on how to safely allow unmanned, commercial aircraft into U.S. airspace.

For now, FAA officials say, they’re sometimes issuing verbal warnings when they learn of drones being used for profit. A spokesman said the agency has sent about a dozen “cease and desist” letters. A Michigan florist recently said the FAA told him to back off plans to deliver Valentine’s Day flowers via drone. A Minnesota brewery also stopped delivering beer to ice fishermen after FAA officials saw a YouTube video the company aired, according to media reports.

The FAA has acknowledged issuing one fine, for $10,000. The drone operator in that matter has challenged the penalty before a National Transportation Safety Board judge.

As with other new technology, the evolution of drones has outpaced government regulations and sparked debate over what controls are appropriate. Advocates describe them as benign worker bees that could generate billions of dollars for the U.S. economy. Some advocates argue against any government restrictions, contending regulations could stifle a revolutionary industry. Others say the technology poses grave safety risks and personal privacy issues that must be addressed.

Large corporations and law enforcement agencies appear to be sitting on the sidelines while government sorts through the questions. But a growing assortment of smaller companies is eagerly embracing unmanned aircraft as a business tool, lured by the creative possibilities. Some business owners are pressing ahead, apparently unaware of the FAA prohibition. Others are proceeding on the assumption the federal government won’t try to clamp down on all drone users.

Roseville Automall in Roseville, Calif., recently used a drone to shoot video for what its advertising consultant described as a “visually appealing, unique and memorable” TV spot, designed to set the mall apart from competitors. Bruce Cambern of Skyhawk Communications, the auto mall’s advertising firm, said he wasn’t clear on what exactly the FAA might allow, but that he believes the agency should not be concerned about the use of a small drone at low heights and low speeds over private property.

“We don’t go up very high at all, barely past rooftop,” he said.

Christopher Brown of Next New Homes Group, a home sales and marketing company based in Roseville, called drones “a game-changer” for his industry. His company uses a small six-rotor copter to take videos and photos for housing developers to use in marketing materials.

“We used to have to hire a helicopter or airplane and hope the weather is perfect on the day we scheduled three weeks in advance, and hope we get the right shot from 1,000 feet,” he said. “Now we can do it from 100 feet with way more angles for one-tenth the cost.”

One Sacramento-area wedding photographer, who asked not to be named for fear of getting a call from the FAA, has begun offering drone aerials as part of his video package, mainly for outdoor weddings. At a recent wedding, he said his drone “drew more attention than the wedding cake. The guys will surround it.” He said he expects drones to be a wedding video staple within 10 years.

Sacramento videographer Justin Majeczky employs a home-built drone to take bird’s-eye videos of custom homes, showing off the surrounding property and views for potential buyers — and has his fingers crossed the FAA will not shut him down. He recently shot swooping aerials of a $20 million Tahoe lakeside mansion, giving viewers a sense of what the home and its dock look like from the lake.

Despite the enthusiasm, federal officials, pilots and others say safety is a major concern, and that regulations are needed before thousands of drones take to the skies in urban areas in the next few years. While many drones weigh no more than 3 pounds, others weigh a hefty 50 pounds or more, and can fly high enough to cross paths with commercial aircraft.

A drone operator in New York was killed just a few months ago when he was hit in the head by his drone’s rotors. Last summer, a drone crashed into the grandstands at a Virginia sporting event, causing minor injuries to three spectators. In another incident, captured on a widely circulated YouTube video, a drone careened into a bride and groom during a pre-wedding shoot.

Officials say the FAA needs to deal with questions of how remote aircraft operators will be able to detect and avoid other drones, and how to assure a drone can return safely to home base on its own if an operator loses contact.

Advocates contend that drones won’t be as dangerous as many people fear, if piloted by people who have proper training and skills. They point out that many domestic drones are merely the latest generation of the remote-control planes that hobbyists have flown for decades.

The FAA recently issued a statement saying it is taking its task seriously, and that it will proceed in “incremental” steps, starting first with proposals later this year for commercial use of unmanned aircraft under 55 pounds.

AFP Photo/Saul Loeb