On February 20, 2017, UPS and Workhorse Group, an Ohio-based battery-electric truck and drone developer, successfully conducted a test that launched a drone from the top of a UPS truck, which then autonomously delivered a...more
The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) filed its 65-page brief in its case against the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) this week, for the FAA’s failure to address privacy risks in its final small unmanned...more
On February 23, 2017, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released an updated drone sighting report containing data covering February through September 2016. The report includes pilot, air traffic controller, law...more
Last week, a class action law suit was filed against leader in the drone industry, DJI Technology, Inc. (DJI), for an allegedly harmful firmware update that occurred in December 2015 that rendered certain commercial drones in...more
2/24/2017
/ Attorney's Fees ,
Breach of Warranty ,
Class Action ,
Commercial Use ,
Drones ,
Express Warranty ,
Popular ,
Software ,
Technology Sector ,
Unmanned Aircraft Systems ,
Wifi
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a press release on February 6, 2017 that it and the State of New Jersey have settled with Vizio for $2.2 million for claims that Vizio installed software on its smart TVs to collect...more
If you were one of the 111 million viewers to watch Super Bowl LI, you may have seen the half-time show which featured not only a performance by Lady Gaga, but over 300 swarming drones performing an intricate light show....more
2/13/2017
/ Airspace ,
Commercial Use ,
Drones ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
Football ,
Lady Gaga ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Sports ,
Super Bowl ,
Technology Sector ,
Unmanned Aircraft Systems
The city of Orlando, Florida recently issued a new drone ordinance aiming to “promote hobbyists and commercial use of unmanned aircraft” while “balancing the paramount need to protect the well-being, tranquility and privacy...more
On January 27, 2017, police in Pacifica, California arrested a drone operator for allegedly flying a drone near the scene of a helicopter rescue, which effectively delayed the rescue operation. Police and fire rescue...more
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recently made some Section 333 policy changes that may have slipped under some commercial pilots’ radars. Back in November, the FAA posted a document in the Federal Register that...more
The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) has announced the formation of a Remote Pilots Council which aims to promote education and dialog between commercial unmanned aircraft systems (UAS or...more
SkyPan International, Inc. (SkyPan), based in Chicago, and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) agreed upon a comprehensive settlement to resolve the enforcement cases where the FAA alleged that the SkyPan operated...more
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s (LASD) use of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS or drones) has been approved by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for “dangerous, hostile and life-saving operations.” LASD...more
At the CES Unmanned Systems conference in Las Vegas last week, Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Michael Huerta, provided the public with an update on the state of our unmanned aircraft systems (UAS)...more
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) continues to work on its proposed rule which would allow the operation of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), or drones, over people, expected (hopefully) to be released before the end...more
Last week the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approved beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) unmanned aircraft systems (UAS or drone) operations at a test site in North Dakota. Now, with this BVLOS operation approval,...more
The biggest news of 2016 for the commercial drone market was surely the finalization of the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Part 107 regulations. And even better news for the commercial drone market was that the Part...more
12/30/2016
/ Airspace ,
Amazon Marketplace ,
Commercial Use ,
Drones ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
OIRA ,
Part 107 ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Technology Sector ,
Unmanned Aircraft Systems ,
Waivers
As the holiday season comes to an end, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will vamp up its focus on recreational drones. Why? Because hundreds of thousands of drones were given as gifts, and the FAA will increase its...more
The Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) drone registration system marked its one year anniversary on December 21, 2016. Since then, 616,000 drone owners have registered their drones. The FAA sees this as a great...more
Amazon’s Prime Air took off on its first fully autonomous package delivery flight. While there have been many hurdles for Amazon’s drone package delivery initiative in the United States, that has not stopped them in other...more
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) released its recent audit of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), “FAA Lacks A Risk-Based Oversight Process For Civil Unmanned Aircraft Systems,”...more
The Drone Manufacturers Alliance (DMA) has voiced approval of President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of Elaine Chao as the next U.S. Secretary of Transportation in its November 9 letter to Trump and the Trump-Pence...more
12/12/2016
/ Administrative Appointments ,
Airspace ,
Commercial Use ,
Drones ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Technology Sector ,
Transportation Industry ,
Trump Administration ,
Unmanned Aircraft Systems
If you are considering purchasing a drone this holiday season, make sure to check out the newly launched online training course created by the Unmanned Safety Institute (USI) designed specifically for drone hobbyists. This...more
Blippar, an augmented reality app, recently released its facial-recognition software which allows users to scan faces with their smartphones. The Blippar app makes it possible for people to scan faces (from print, TV or in...more
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released a friendly holiday warning for those who chose to purchase a drone this year for the holidays: fly it safely. The FAA released a new video summarizing the rules and...more
JW Marriott Hotel & Resorts (Marriott) and DJI, one of the world’s largest drone makers, have partnered up to launch the hotel chain’s first Drone Experience Program; a program which will provide guests with the opportunity...more