I am an AOPA member and this just arrived in my mailbox:
October 8, 2015
By Jim Moore
Some predict the number of drones sold in the U.S. will exceed 1 million by the end of the holiday season.
With a million drones expected in consumer hands by Christmas, a $1.9 million fine now sought by the FAA from one drone operator, and a growing mountain of sighting reports from pilots, members of a House committee with jurisdiction over civil aviation vented frustration and urged action during an Oct. 7 hearing.
Members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s Subcommittee on Aviation also voiced concern about disrupting an unmanned aircraft industry that is already producing growing numbers of jobs and economic activity, with potential for much more.
“The key is balance, and I believe that this committee, as well as the FAA and stakeholders, continue to strive for just that,” Subcommittee Chairman Frank LoBiondo (R-N.J.) said in his opening. “The answers to these questions will be complex, though I am confident that our country can and will address them.”
One congressman suggested making drone misconduct a federal crime, subject to a year in jail and “significant” fines, though FAA Deputy Administrator Michael Whitaker said it has proved very difficult to find the perpetrators breaking rules and laws that are already on the books. Unlike laser pointers, Whitaker noted, drones are not visibly linked to their operator in a way that affected pilots can see, and report.
“One of the challenges with this issue is actually locating UAS operators," Whitaker told the lawmakers. “You look at the pilot reports… they don’t tell us where the (drone) operator is.”
Bob Z.
Topic: DRONES $$$$$$$$$$$$$$ (Read 1690 times)
