biblio777

This is ridiculous. The coming (and fictitious) drone/UAS revolution every little rich punk in Silicon Valley is just that ... day dreaming.

I cannot wait to watch the FAA mow down your dreams. You have NO idea the power of the organization you are dealing with and their commitment to safety.

UAS are not and will not be (for decades) up to the FAA standards. If you are an investor putting money behind these outlandish businesses proposed here then you are even stupider than I thought.

You seem to misunderstand you cannot commercially operate a UAS in the US. This is not "awesome news" for all your "disruptive" startups. You cannot "disrupt" the FAA and I highly suggest you do not attempt too; that path is littered with corpses. The FAA does not joke around and your little UAS is no where near up to the 50+ years of standards, processes and regulations in place for modern aircraft. Why do you think new aircraft manufacturers are not popping up every year? The ignorance and complete disrespect for an industry no one of this forumn truly understands is appalling. Your drones are not going to be delivery packages or flying passengers anytime soon (most modern airlines are not flown but "operated" like a giant computer anyways). That is about as close as it is going to get for awhile so dream on.

Let's stick with some facts (I'm a pilot and work closely with the FAA for my dayjob so I know a bit about this space) ...

- The FAA is responsible for the safety of U.S. airspace from the ground up. This misperception may originate with the idea that manned aircraft generally must stay at least 500 feet above the ground.

- There are no shades of gray in FAA regulations. Anyone who wants to fly an aircraft—manned or unmanned—in U.S. airspace needs some level of FAA approval. Private sector (civil) users can obtain an experimental airworthiness certificate to conduct research and development, training and flight demonstrations. Commercial UAS operations are limited and require the operator to have certified aircraft and pilots, as well as operating approval. ... The FAA reviews and approves UAS operations over densely-populated areas on a case-by-case basis.

- In the 2012 FAA reauthorization legislation, Congress told the FAA to come up with a plan for 'safe integration' of UAS by September 30, 2015. Safe integration will be incremental.

So don't get too excited your drones won't be taking the skies anytime soon.