FAA gives unmanned aircraft exemptions to real estate and agriculture
Tuesday, January 6th, unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) operations were given two regulatory exemptions by the Federal Aviation Administration.
The exemptions went to Advanced Aviation Solutions in Spokane, Washington and to Douglas Trudeau with Tierra Antigua Realty in Tucson, Arizona. Prior to these exemptions, the FAA says it gave 12 other exemptions to 11 companies.
According to the FAA, Trudeau’s exemption gives him permission to fly a Phantom 2 Vision + quadcopter to improve real estate listing videos and community awareness.
Advanced Aviation Solutions will use use a fixed-wing eBee Ag UAS for agriculturally related purposes. AAS plans to use the aircraft to making “photographic measurements and to perform crop scouting for precision agriculture,” according to the FAA.
The FAA says that in addition to the regulatory exemptions, both applicants also need to get a Certificate of Waiver of Authorization (COA), which ensures safety for the airspace they have chosen for their purposes. The COA will also signify that they have taken proper precautions to avoid other aircraft. According to the FAA, the COA will mandate flight rules, including the reporting of unforeseen incidents.
The unmanned aircraft systems do not pose a threat to national security or to national airspace, according to Secretary of Transportation Anthony Fox. Ergo, they do not need a certificate of airworthiness.
The FAA said they took the planned operating environments of each of the aircraft into consideration to make sure their operations would be safe. One rule requires both a pilot and an observer. The FAA also requires the pilot to have a private pilot certificate and the UAS must be in sight at all times.
