How drones and UAVs are already affecting construction jobsites

Re:How drones and UAVs are already affecting construction jo... by joezydeco on Wednesday September 17, 2014 @10:30AM (#8330123)

You can shit on the US-FAA all you want. I enjoy the fact we have an FAA that errs on the side of caution and restraint until a technology is understood and all the implications sorted out.

That caution and care (in cooperation with an equally cautious NTSB) has created an airline industry in the USA that's 10 times per mile safer than driving in a car.

I shudder to think what air travel would be like if we had all adopted a "shoot first think later" attitude in the early days.

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Re:How drones and UAVs are already affecting construction jo... by ratsbane on Wednesday September 17, 2014 @10:46AM (#8330226)

The early days of commercial aviation in the US were largely open and unregulated. The first serious governmental effort to regulate aviation in the US was in 1926, by which time it was clearly needed.

I don't know anyone who thinks the FAA should have no ability to regulate drones, but their unwillingness to draw limits for themselves is causing real problems. Noncommercial drones/model aircraft less than a certain weight and operating below 400 feet and not near an airport have always been legal. If hobbyists are safe to operate according to those rules for personal enjoyment, why should they be banned from operating under those rules for pay?

[edit: grammar]

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Re:How drones and UAVs are already affecting construction jo... by joezydeco on Wednesday September 17, 2014 @10:49AM (#8330246)

I agree, the FAA is a bit messed up when it comes to what can be allowed as a hobby and what needs to be regulated as a business.

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