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In Europe:

The EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency) has published at the beginning of June 2019 the European Drone regulations for flying drones, even commercial drones, safely. Good for EASA.

The general site is here: https://www.easa.europa.eu/regulations with the information about the basic regulations, the AMC (Acceptable Means of Compliance), MG (Guidance Material), and the Certification (“soft law’).

In the United States:

However, according to the US Small UAV Coalition, the United States government has not moved fast enough with its own regulations on operating commercial drone services, although I must add, it has moved fast enough on regulations on registering drones.

Google and Drones:

The FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) has issued, in May-June 2019, the certificate for Google Autonomous Wing Drones, as the “first step” for an autonomous delivery drone service aiming to access goods, reduce traffic congestion, and CO2 emissions.

Amazon and Drones:

Similarly, FAA is in a discussion for a delivery drone service with Amazon Prime Air.  Prime Air Drones can deliver a package within about 15 miles of radius and weighing less than 5 pounds (according to Amazon CEO Consumer Worldwide, between 75 and 90 percent of the current delivery fells under the threshold).  These delivery drone services are tested both in the United States and abroad. e Air Drones have a combination of safety features that include visual, thermal and ultrasonic and other sensors to include a sense-and-avoid system.

Facebook and Drones:

Talking about the US effort in the commercial drone field, Facebook has halted the project of Aquila drones about one year ago in June 2018. The project Aquila was an internet solar-powered drone developed in great secrecy in Australia. However, Facebook is now collaborating with Airbus, the European aeronautical giant, in another solar-powered drone called Zephyr, also a HPAS (High Altitude Pseudo Satellite). Zephyr apparently is a model designed for “defense, humanitarian and environmental mission.” Zephyr Model S (visible in the picture) has a 25-meter wingspan and has an operation altitude of 20 km. It uses a millimeter-wave radio to broadcast to the ground. As a raft project, Facebook aims to increase internet access worldwide and in particular in Asia, Africa and Latin America.

More in the United States:

The LAANC (Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability) facilities established in the spring 2019 from a collaboration between the agency FAA and the industry operating commercially in the United States.

Right now, for commercial operators in the United States, there are several rules of FAA for drones, such as the prohibition to fly over people, that it is allowed only with a waiver, as well as others.  All of these means that FAA is heavily involved with Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM). This will be the topic of one of the next blog.

The FAA has proposed in January 14, 2019 the integration of data from drones and satellites. Here it is the proposal and a new pilot program: https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/transportation-research-board-annual-meeting-washington-dc

According to U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao, on December 14, 2018 there were nearly 1.3 million registered drones in United States, and more than 116,000 registered drone operators. The secretary declared three proposals: 1- the US Department of Transportation is ready to issue for comment a proposed new rule that would allow drones to fly overnight and over people without waivers, if certain conditions are met. You can find it at https://www.faa.gov/uas/programs_partnerships/DOT_initiatives/ Everybody is  of concerns about security, privacy and safety, but perhaps needs to be reminded. 2- Proposal regarding the UAS ( Unmanned Aircraft Systems) Safe and Secure ANPRM (Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking) Operations.  This proposal identifies major drone safety and security issues that may pose a threat to other aircraft, to people on the ground or to national security.  3- There was the need, according to the FAA, to “develop drone traffic management.” A research project that was initiated by NASA; subsequently became a major joint effort between the FAA and NASA and, in April 2017, through Congressional direction, the agencies combined their respective technology research, and defined the scope of the pilot project. Today, the US Department of Transportation (DOT) announced that the pilot project has become an initiative including three contracts. These contracts have been awarded to commercial service entities to develop technology to provide flight planning, communications, separation and weather services for these drones, which will operate under 400 feet.  They are the Nevada UAS Test Site Smart Silver State, the Northern Plains Unmanned Aircraft Systems Test Site, and the Virginia Tech Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership. This unmanned aircraft traffic management system will be separate from, but complementary to, the traditional FAA air traffic management system.  It will create a shared information network and gather geospatial data. Chao said “together, these three initiatives will be a major step forward in enabling th safe development, testing and deployment of drones in our country.”

Recently, Sat-Drones, a women minority-owned business, with a mission to develop innovative geospatial satellite-drone products for the improvement of human welfare, partnered with Esri® as an Emerging Business partner in the Esri Startup Program. Esri, the global market leader in geographic information system (GIS) software , selected the company into the three-year program to support Sat-Drones in bringing new and innovative products to Esri customers.

Amid the competitive drone evolution, in 2016, Dr. Lucia Lovison-Golob, a world-renowned geospatial expert, launched Sat-Drones, an innovative software engineering company to develop tools to foster geospatial data and services acquisition; harmonization; and analysis among several data from space, air, land, water, ocean, and society in general. In today’s drone and sensor technological evolution and environmental change, there is a constant need for faster and improved accurate data solution providers. Sat-Drones strives to provide timely and precise data, through innovative technology by integrating imagery coming from satellites and drones with other observations. Sat-Drones arose from the need of managing and analyzing data and imagery. The company provides customized software to integrate satellite, drone, and statistical data. With their proprietary algorithm, they provide higher quality and metadata and offer geospatial analytics that will allow end users to execute accurate, real-time, and cost-effective decisions. The partnership between Sat-Drones and Esri will help support better geospatial services and data.

The market currently provides data from drones, and/or geospatial data, but no company provides comprehensive and/or tailored solutions to the specific end-user for seamless cost-effective decisions. Oftentimes, the end user does not have the resources to quickly interpret and analyze data to make the best-informed decision. Sat-Drones, with the partnership of Esri, aims to provide timely, custom-driven software solutions.

• In today’s drone and sensor technological evolution and environmental change, there is a constant need for faster and improved accurate data solution providers.
• Sat-Drones arose from the need of managing and analyzing data and imagery.
• Sat-Drones with Esri’s partnership will be a one-stop shop solution.

Sat-Drones has expertise in:

• Geospatial analysis and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) design.
• Web GIS, data services integration, remote sensing, and related topics.
• Algorithm development on data interoperability within satellite systems and drones.
• Experience in satellite system engineering supporting missions at different space agencies.

Sat-Drones is engaged in the application of drone and satellite technology for agriculture management, disaster response, environmental monitoring, energy monitoring, STEM/STEAM programs, mining management, and human trafficking. In all these areas, Esri has vast experience, therefore Sat-Drones believes that the collaboration will create effective synergies and benefit both companies as well as everyone involved in these fields.

Dr. Lovison-Golob states, “Thanks to the Esri partnership, our products and services will have a proprietary algorithm that is more integrated and will be customizable to each user and needs, providing a one-stop shop solution. Some competitors provide only drone data, others lack data collection through drones, and others lack data integration with other data sources for comprehensive analysis. Most of their products require connectivity and cloud storage, whereas we are integrating space, time, and statistical data from in situ observations, satellites’ optical, lidar, and/or radar data, striving to get higher quality and metadata for every data.”

Dr. Lucia Lovison-Golob’s journey and expertise has crossed continents from Europe and Africa, to the Americas in Chile. She spans from geospatial development to disaster management and risk reduction across different private and public entities. Among awards and recognition are the ‘Medal for Excellence in Geographic Information Science’, granted by Esri in 2002, and the first woman explorer in Italy in 2010 by the Association of Pioneers and Veterans of ENI (Italian National Energy Company). Her achievements have not only been economically beneficially to private enterprises, such as Agip Spa, where she identified gas fields now in production in the Adriatic Sea, but in humanitarian efforts, where she evaluated seismic risk of a major earthquake-stricken area in 1976 in Northeastern Italy.

About Esri

Esri, the global market leader in geographic information system (GIS) software, offers the most powerful mapping and spatial analytics technology available. Since 1969, Esri has helped customers unlock the full potential of data to improve operational and business results. Today, Esri software is deployed in more than 350,000 organizations including the world’s largest cities, most national governments, 75 percent of Fortune 500 companies, and more than 7,000 colleges and universities. Esri engineers the most advanced solutions for digital transformation, the Internet of Things (IoT), and location analytics to inform the most authoritative maps in the world. Visit us at esri.com

Esri is a registered mark of Esri in the United States, the European Community, or certain other jurisdictions. Other companies and products or services mentioned herein may be trademarks, service marks, or registered marks of their respective mark owners.

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rule: in order to fly in United States, a drone must be registered at FAA at a cost of 5 USD.

This rule was first applied by FAA in late 2015, then it was suppressed by the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia that found the FAA rule violated the Section 336 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 14 February 2012 for model aircraft. Afterwards, President Trump signed on 12 December 2017, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018, that brings back the legal requirement of the FAA registration for all drones between 0.55 lbs. and 55 lbs. that wants to fly in the United States.  The  registration is located at https://faadronezone.faa.gov/#/ for recreational, commercial, governmental or drones related to other purposes. This registration is valid for a period of 3 years.  It regards most of the drones and if a person has multiple drones, the registration is attached to the registration of the Remote Pilot. It means that it is needed one registration for one pilot, who may own multiple drones, or Unmanned Automatic Systems (UASs).

You need the same location to apply for a waiver/authorization, or reporting an accident under Part 107.

If you fly a small unmanned aircraft under Section 336 with an aero-modeling club, you have to follow a different route and registration that is indicated in the web site. Once you have the FAA registration card with your identity and the one of the drone spelled out, you may mark the label on the drone, or you may print it out and put it in the battery comportment. It is an individual preference. However, some drone manufacturers say that drones should transmit identifier for security reason.

In Europe, the registration of the drones (20-25 kg), is undergoing the process of approval by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). The European Community will have a set of regulations by the end of 2018. Right Now, the Remote Piloted Aircraft (RPA) with a drone of a mass of 150 kg or less for civilian use is not regulated centrally by the European Community, although each EU member States regulates these aircrafts, independently and differently.

From 2015, in Chile, drone operators are required to obtain a license and to register their drones with the civil aviation authority Dirección General de Aeronáutica Civil de Chile (DGAC).