US companies push for looser drone regulations

From duct tape to the Internet, many technologies that are used in everyday life were originally developed for military use. Now that several big American corporations are pushing the Federal Aviation Administration to loosen regulations, drones may be next.

However, because of their dark past and present military use, drones may be a harder sell to the public than duct tape. According to casualty estimates released by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, drone strikes have killed an estimated 3,213 people in Pakistan. A study by Stanford Law and NYU showed fewer than 2 percent of these victims are high-profile targets. The rest are children (5.4 percent), civilians (16.7 percent) and alleged combatants.

One attack on a seminary, detailed in Pakistani government documents, left 80 children and one man dead – all of them civilians.

A Human Rights Watch report released this year described another tragic attack involving a convoy of 11 cars “bringing a bride and family members to the groom’s hometown.”

The strike killed at least 12 and wounded 15 others. The U.S. government claimed the operation was targeting a member of Al-Qaeda who escaped.

(See: http://drones.pitchinteractive.com)

In an attempt to draw the public’s perception of drones away from the battlefield, companies such as Google and Amazon began campaigns last year publicizing their efforts to integrate the new technology into their business models.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Google’s “Project Wing” drone has carried candy bars, dog treats, cattle vaccines, water and radios to two farmers in Queensland, Australia. Similarly, Amazon has launched its own drone program called Prime Air.

“The goal of this new delivery system is to get packages into customers' hands in 30 minutes or less,” according to the company’s website.

CNN reported even Domino’s Pizza has its own “Domicopter” capable of flying pizzas around in their signature Heatwave bags.

Killian McGiboney, Richmond student and founder of the Robotics Club, has also found a use for drone technology in a project he calls "Future by Drones."

“I’m a physics major, and I really like technology and I love photography, so I saw this thing about drones and I thought that maybe I could promote stuff that I like,” he said.

Future by Drones “took off,” and McGiboney now uses drones to create video tours of schools and campuses from a unique bird’s-eye view.

(See: http://futurebydrones.com/)

So why haven’t we seen drones fully establish themselves in the private sector?

Stringent regulations by the FAA prohibit most commercial drone use. Amazon has petitioned the FAA to allow drone testing at its domestic research facilities despite regulations, but so far no such exemption has been made. The WSJ wrote that as a result, Amazon has limited drone testing to its Canadian facilities.

Pressure from American companies such as Amazon has created some sense of urgency in drone regulation reform. According to USA Today, Congress has set a September 2015 deadline for the FAA to regulate airspace with commercial drone use in mind.

“There will be challenges to this integration,” FAA administrator Michael Huerta said. “We must meet these obligations in a thoughtful and careful manner.”

"Lives are at stake," said Sen. Jay Rockefeller, chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, citing collisions between unmanned and piloted commercial aircraft as a major concern.

Others have said America’s sluggish domestic response to emerging drone technology was keeping the U.S. a step behind other countries with more relaxed policies. Manufacturers are at the forefront of this debate.

Yamaha Motor's vice president for new business development, Henio Arcangeli, said its RMAX drone had been fertilizing crops in Japan for 20 years.

"There is no reason to delay all commercial [drone] use for the several years it will take the FAA to develop more comprehensive regulations," Arcangeli said.

The FAA maintains that commercial drone use must be approached with caution.

"Even today, we don't have a complete understanding of where this might go in the future," Huerta said.

Contact reporter Adam Gibson at adam.gibson@richmond.edu