Drone Advisory Committee Holds Third Meeting Today

The FAA will host the third meeting of the Drone Advisory Committee (DAC) today, where working groups will present their progress.  The group, announced last May, is designed as a collaborative advisory group to help the FAA move forward on drone integration.

The DAC is led by Intel’s CEO Brian Krzanich, further evidence that traditional chip makers and computer manufacturers are shifting into the drone space.  Members include representatives from major drone manufacturers, Internet business giants Facebook and Amazon, and other industry stakeholders.  The Committee also includes traditional manned aircraft pilots and representatives of airports and communities.

The DAC’s first meeting was held last September, when the committee was given an overview of the current status and objectives for drone integration.  During the second meeting, held in January, the DAC formed 3 task groups.   “The first task group will review issues related to the roles and responsibilities of federal, state, and local governments in regulating and enforcing drone laws…,” said an FAA statement about the meeting. “The second task group will consider technological and regulatory mechanisms that would allow drone operators to gain access to the airspace beyond what the agency currently permits under the Small UAS Rule (commonly known as Part 107). The DAC will also discuss the formation of a third task group, which will consider ways to fund the expanded provision of services needed to support UAS integration.”

The agenda for today’s meeting calls for those task groups to report on their progress and recommendations, followed by the assignment of new topics for the next meeting.

Participants tweeting on the FAA’s opening comments indicate that the FAA has said that there are currently over 800,000 drone registrations, and that they are working toward a functional Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM) system by 2019.