Drone Rule Shot Down

May 25, 2017
It's not gotten wide distribution, but a federal appeals court has downed the Federal Aviation Administration's rule requiring registration of non-commercial drones. And as expected, opponents of the decision say it will make the skies less safe.

Friday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled in favor of John Taylor, an unmanned aircraft (drone) enthusiast who sued the FAA, saying the FAA lacked the authority to issue the Registration Rule. In the decision, Circuit Judge Brett Kavanau wrote simply: "Taylor is right."

The three judge Appeals Court panel argued that the agency was barred from imposing new regulations on "model aircraft" due the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, a law that says the FAA "may not promulgate any rule or regulation regarding a model aircraft" so long as the aircraft was less than 55 pounds and only used recreationally.

In response, the FAA says it is "carefully" reviewing the decision, and "put registration and operation regulations in place to ensure that drones are operated in a way that is safe and does not pose security and privacy threats."

Interestingly, the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International has expressed their disappointment with the system, saying the registration provided "accountability and responsibility by users of the national airspace" and the ruling "helped create a culture of safety that deters careless and reckless behavior."

The drone registration requirement was issued in 2015 and required any drone over .55 and under 55 pounds to be registered with the agency. Unregistered drone owners were subject to civil and criminal penalties.

As of February, the FAA said there were more than 770,000 drones registered. The FAA estimates that round 2.3 million drones will be sold this year- and another 13 million by 2020.

The law barring the FAA's registration requirement, by the way, expires in September, but Congress could change the laws regarding non-commercial drones by then. Or the FAA could appeal the decision.

FAA Administrator Michael Huerta has been quoted as saying the agency is launching an "Aviation Rulemaking Committee" to look at how to create ways to remotely identify and track drones even when the pilot isn't visible. "This," Huerta said, "is one of the law enforcement community's top concerns, and we hope the recommendations we receive will pave the way for expanded drone operations over people and beyond visual line of sight."

Over the weekend, I watched as a drone owner was "playing" with a new unit. Unlike my older drone, his new unit was smaller, faster, more maneuverable and had new wireless communications abilities allowing him to control it far beyond our visual range.

He was conspicuously careful as he flew it over boats on Tennessee's Cherokee Lake, but the new technological advances certainly make it possible to operate far from an operator's immediate proximity.

With internal "digital fences" prohibiting drones from flying into controlled airspace and self-regulating altitude capabilities (new drones are programmed to fly under 400 feet and absent any examples of the misapplication of drones for nefarious purposes, the FAA might have a tough time convincing a higher court- or Congress- that a need exists for them to reinstitute a registration policy that is obviously not effective.

We'll keep you posted.

—Jim Shepherd