Thursday, April 23, 2015

Has Canada figured out drone regulations?

http://www.popsci.com/why-canada-winning-drone-race?con&dom=editorspicks&src=syndication&google_editors_picks=true

"With a quick, flexible process for giving permits to commercial operators, and a blanket exemption for small UAS, the civil aviation authority Transport Canada issued 1,672 commercial drone licenses last year, 945 in 2013, and 345 in 2012. As of this writing, the FAA has issued a grand total of just 28.
The Federal Aviation Administration finally proposed rules for commercial use of UAS last month, but even so, the agency’s cumbersome rule-making process means that nothing will change for at least another 18-24 months. So even though the FAA is dropping the requirement for a pilot's license, you'll still need to have a license to fly an actual plane until those rules are finalized -- in roughly 2017 or so.
In the new rules 'the FAA clearly concedes that the requirement of having a pilots’ license has very limited relevance for UAS operation,' says Diana Cooper, a drone-law specialist at the Canadian firm of LaBarge Weinstein.' There’s no reason that until we have those rules in place, they should be requiring a pilot’s license for an exemption. That [change] could be implemented right away. But I’m not sensing any messaging from the FAA that suggests that they’re planning to do that.'"

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