More Industry Leaders Seek Government Partners for UAS Integration Pilot

More drone industry leaders are stepping forward to publicly offer their expertise, resources and position to local governments applying for participation in the UAS Integration Pilot Program.  Commercial drone industry pioneers PrecisionHawk made their offering public today, following yesterday’s release by drone manufacturers DJI.  In business since 2010, PrecisionHawk is among the most experienced companies in the industry, with large clients in a broad variety of verticals including agriculture, insurance, energy and government.

“PrecisionHawk, a leading provider of commercial drone technology, is calling on state, local and tribal governments to submit their proposals to the U.S. government’s UAS Integration Pilot Program by November 28th,” says the announcement. “Following a policy memorandum from President Trump, the U.S. Department of Transportation is launching the program to generate data that will ultimately inform the development of federal regulations for advanced drone operations—examples include flight over people and beyond line of sight flight.”

PrecisionHawk’s announcement describes the core competencies that make them an ideal partner for state, local and tribal governments interested in participation.  In addition to their established position as policy leaders, and commercial experience the company describes their existing unmanned traffic management (UTM) solution:

Advanced safety technology: PrecisionHawk’s state-of-the-art LATAS system is a leading unmanned traffic management solution that provides the necessary infrastructure to support remote identification and tracking, beyond visual line of sight operations, and operations in urban environments and controlled airspace.

“We believe that the UAS Integration Pilot Program is in-line with PrecisionHawk’s approach, which is to provide expertise and recommendations to rule-makers that are rooted in data,” said Diana Cooper, SVP of Policy and Strategy at PrecisionHawk. “Under the Pathfinder Program, we were able to see first-hand the benefit of involving industry stakeholders in the future of rulemaking. We look forward to extending that reach to the broader community.”

It’s an indication of the importance of the program to the industry that PrecisionHawk names Cooper (interested parties may contact her here) as their program coordinator.  Cooper is a well-known and respected name in both the industry and government, where PrecisionHawk has taken leadership roles on NASA research committees and FAA regulatory advisory committees.  They’ve been a major player in the FAA Pathfinder Program, contributing to research on flight beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS).  This contribution, and the major safety testing that the company has helped perform, has led to PrecisionHawk being the only flight services provider currently authorized for BVLOS flight and nighttime ops – making them a valuable partner to communities willing to make the most of the Pilot Program.