Details and Tweets From the FAA’s BLOS Announcement at Unmanned Systems Expo 2015

Wednesday morning, FAA administrator Michael Huerta addressed the attendees of AUVSI’s Unmanned Systems conference in Atlanta. Mr Huerta’s big announcement was the FAA’s new initiative to research and, eventually, authorize beyond-line-of-sight (BLOS) flights for drones.

BLOS flights have always been a necessary part of the evolution of drones and the UAV plans of companies like Amazon will require the ability to fly drones well beyond the eyes of their operators. The FAA’s reluctance to authorize such flights, or even the administration’s unwillingness to grant permission to test such capabilities has long been a sore subject among drone manufacturers.

In addition to BLOS flights, the FAA is also looking to address visual-line-of-sight (VLOS) flights in urban areas and extended visual line of sight operations in rural areas.

Mr. Huerta announced partnerships with CNN, PrecisionHawk, and BNSF Railway to further these new efforts.

“Even as we pursue our current rulemaking effort for small unmanned aircraft, we must continue to actively look for future ways to expand non-recreational UAS uses,” Huerta said in the official press release. “This new initiative involving three leading U.S. companies will help us anticipate and address the needs of the evolving UAS industry.”

Naturally, Huerta’s announcement was met with a mix of skepticism and enthusiasm from the crowd. Here are some of the tweets from the event explaining the FAA’s new initiative and the reactions it is getting around the web:

Huerta: We’re partnering with 3 leading companies who have committed resources for research #faaUAS #Unmanned15

— The FAA (@FAANews) May 6, 2015

FAA’s new UAS Pathfinder Program is with @CNN @PrecisionHawk @BNSFRailroad #faaUAS #unmanned15 pic.twitter.com/xwNVE8aU4T — The FAA (@FAANews) May 6, 2015

.@CNN to research news gathering drones in urban areas for #faaUAS #Unmanned15 pic.twitter.com/09gW72Fsme

— The FAA (@FAANews) May 6, 2015

Crop monitoring to blossom with #faaUAS @PrecisionHawk UAS Pathfinder Program #Unmanned15 pic.twitter.com/WcN1GSAfOa — The FAA (@FAANews) May 6, 2015

 

This CNN/FAA announcement has focused on terms like “close relationships” and “trusted operators” Local affiliates cant be happy — Greg McNeal (@GregoryMcNeal) May 6, 2015

Data from these trials could result in FAA-approved operations in the next few years #faaUAS #Unmanned15 — The FAA (@FAANews) May 6, 2015

PrecisionHawk Signs UAV Research Agreement with @FAA to Address Beyond Visual Line of Sight #sUAS #Unmanned15 http://t.co/1LlEyPDYlL — PrecisionHawk (@PrecisionHawk) May 6, 2015

Per FAA, this program is not funded. Pathfinder research costs are borne by operators — Greg McNeal (@GregoryMcNeal) May 6, 2015

FAA announces testing BVLOS #drone flights, which are already commonplace and not prohibited right now (unless you have a §333 Exemption).

— Peter Sachs, Esq. (@TheDroneGuy) May 6, 2015

FAA's 2nd "big" announcement today is an upcoming B4UFLY app, which already exists (See @GregoryMcNeal's AirMap.io) -www.faa.gov/uas/b4ufly

— Peter Sachs, Esq. (@TheDroneGuy) May 6, 2015