The FAA Wants To Track All Drones Flying In The US

Several years ago, the FAA implemented a rule in which drone operators would be required to register their drones with the agency. There are several reasons for this, one of which included making sure that drone operators fly their drones responsibly and not into restricted areas or use them for illegal purposes.

However, it seems that the FAA will be taking drone management to the next level, where a newly proposed rule would make it so that the agency will actually be able to track all drones that are being flown in the US. This new rule would require drones to implement a remote ID system that will allow for third-party systems to track them, thus allowing law enforcement to identify drones that aren’t authorized for flight and could also pose a security threat.

The FAA expects that all eligible drones in the US to comply with this new rule in the next three years. According to the FAA, “This is an important building block in the unmanned traffic management ecosystem. All UAS [unmanned aircraft systems] operating in the airspace of the United States, with very few exceptions, would be subject to the requirements of this rule.”

As the FAA points out, there will be some exceptions, such as how drones flying within 400 feet of their operators are not required to broadcast their location. While some might feel that they are giving up some of their privacy, others are defending it, saying that this rule could help pave the way for the widespread use of drones for commercial purposes, such as making deliveries.

Tyler Lee
Categories: Robots
Tags: Drones, faa, Legal