The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said the final rules in December allowing small drones to fly over people and at night took effect on April 21, in what could be a significant step toward its eventual use for widespread commercial deliveries.
“Final rules take effect for remotely identifying drones and allowing operators of small drones to fly over people and at night under certain conditions,” FAA said in the announcement.
US Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg noted that following this, the Department looks forward to working with stakeholders to ensure that the country's policies regarding Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) keep pace with innovation and that these are safe and secure — and “fosters the country's economic competitiveness.”
“Today’s rules are an important first step in safely and securely managing the growing use of drones in our airspace, though more work remains on the journey to full integration of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS),” Buttigieg said.
The FAA noted that the long-awaited rules for the drones will help address security concerns by requiring remote identification technology in most cases to enable their identification from the ground.
Previously, small drone operations over people were limited to operations over people who were directly participating in the operation, located under a covered structure, or inside a stationary vehicle - unless operators had obtained a waiver from the FAA.
Under the rules, drone manufacturers have 18 months to begin producing drones with Remote ID, and operators will have an additional year to provide Remote ID.
Companies have been racing to create drone fleets to speed deliveries.
According to reports, as of December, the US had over 1.7 million drone registrations and 203,000 FAA-certificated remote pilots.
For at-night operations, the FAA said drones must be equipped with anti-collision lights. The final rules also allow operations over moving vehicles in some circumstances.
“The Operations Over People rule applies to pilots who fly under Part 107 of the Federal Aviation Regulations. Under this rule, the ability to fly over people and over-moving vehicles varies depending on the level of risk a small drone poses to people on the ground. Additionally, this rule allows operations at night under certain conditions provided pilots complete certain training or pass knowledge tests,” it added.
The new rules would drop the need for drones be connected to the internet to transmit location data but do require that they broadcast remote ID messages via radio frequency broadcast.
“Drones can provide virtually limitless benefits, and these new rules will ensure these important operations can grow safely and securely,” said FAA Administrator Steve Dickson.
“The FAA will continue to work closely with other Department of Transportation offices and stakeholders from across the drone community to take meaningful steps to integrate emerging technologies that safely support increased opportunities for more complex drone use.”
