The Takeoff of the UAV

            Like a majority of new technologies, the UAV’s origins began with military application in mind. Would you believe me if I told you that the concept of the UAV is dated all the way back to World War 1? In 1917 a man named Elmer Sperry received the first military contract for the development of his “aerial torpedo” which was an unmanned flight system used to attack the enemy (Blom 2010). The way this technology worked was through the use of gyroscopes to keep the aircraft level and a type of counter that was attached to count the number of propeller rotations. Once the counter hit its preset number, the engine would cut off sending the “aerial torpedo” towards the ground and hopefully at or near its target. Rudimentary yes, but all great technologies have their origin stories. Similar to most other technological developments, inventors improve and add on to the components designed by the predecessor as breakthroughs and advancements are discovered. The UAV is no stranger to these advancements as we look at the current state of the UAV today compared to its “aerial torpedo” origin days.

            Besides military operations the FAA categorizes UAS (unmanned aerial systems; what the FAA calls UAVs/Drones) into 3 different types of operation. The 3 types the FAA recognizes are: public operations (governmental), civil operations (non-governmental), and model aircraft operations (recreation/hobby use). Each operation has specific rules and regulations they must abide by including the airspace the can operate in, the purpose of the operation, etc. For the first type (public operations) the FAA issues a Certificate of Authorization that permits the operator to use a defined block of airspace with special safety provisions unique to that operation. A COA is generally issued and valid for two years (faa.gov/uas/public_operations). The reason for the issuance of the COA is to ensure a level of safety is implemented in UAS operations so there is no interference with manned flight and various other aviation operations that would be conducted in that area of operations. Since there’s no one in the aircraft, operations must be conducted with either someone observing the unmanned aircraft in a manned aircraft with eyes on it, or someone on the ground so separation from other aircraft can be verified. Currently common uses of UAVs in the public operations include law enforcement, border patrol, disaster relief, search and rescue, and hazardous meteorological observation (faa.gov/uas/public_operations).

            The 2^nd type the FAA recognizes which is civil operations includes the use of UAVs for non-governmental use. In order to gain FAA authorization to fly UAVs for civil operation, the FAA requires either a Section 333 Exemption or a Special Airworthiness Certificate (faa.gov/uas/civil_operations). The Section 333 Exemption grants exemption (but still needs to abide by COA and Section 333 regulations) from requiring a COA as long as the commercial operation is in a low-risk, controlled environment. The other form of authorizing your UAV commercial usage is through a SAC (special airworthiness certificate). Obtaining a SAC requires the operator to describe how their system is designed, constructed and manufactured. The software development and control of the system, its configuration management, the quality assurance procedures used, as well as how and where they intend to fly their UAVs (faa.gov/uas/civil_operations). The SAC extends on to the experimental use of UAVs for civil use through the FAA Order 8130.34 which inspectors use when a civil UAV is being used for things like research and development, crew training, and market surveys. When civil UAVs aren’t being used for experimental purposes, the range of operations can include things like land surveying, 3-D mapping, logistic delivery, sports/news/and film recording, and even becoming their own mobile WiFi hotspots.

            The third type of operation that the FAA recognizes is called model aircraft operations and is used for recreational and hobby use only. This category has proven to be the most challenging to regulate and has proven to cause the most issues with manned aircraft in terms of airspace violations. In order to reduce these kind of incidents, the FAA and other industry associations came up with the Know Before You Fly campaign designed to educate new incoming drone/UAV users to the NAS (national air space). Some safety guidelines outlined in the Know Before You Fly website are to fly no higher than 400 feet and remain below the surrounding/highest obstacle around, keep your UAV in eyesight at all times, do not interfere with manned aircraft operations, remain 25 feet away from individuals and vulnerable property, and to contact the airport and control tower before flying within 5 miles of an airport or heliport (knowbeforeyoufly.org). In order to remain in the recreational category which means no required FAA authorization, a UAV is NOT allowed to be used for compensation or sale (faa.gov/uas/model_aircraft). The FAA began a registration process for model aircraft requiring all model aircraft that weigh 0.55lbs to 55lbs to be registered in the aircraft registry database created by the FAA. I believe they initiated this requirement to aid in regulating and punishing those drones that violate the safety guidelines or who interfere with manned aircraft operations (like colliding with planes near airports or causing distractions). The response so far seems positive though because as of January 22, 2016 (30 days after the UAV registration opened) 295,306 drones had been registered in the FAA database (Huerta 2016). In an effort to aid in FAA compliance, drone developer DJI has begun beta testing for a firmware update in their drones called GEO (Geospatial Environment Online) which gives DJI drones real time updates on no-fly zones (Lavars 2016). The firmware is being honed to disable DJI developed drones if they were to enter these no-fly zones reducing the hazard UAVs pose when in the vicinity of manned aircraft.

            The UAV continues to develop and takeoff in the recreational and civil operated market. According to a market forecast conducted by Grand View Research, from 2014-2022 the UAV market plans to grow 17% (http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/commercial-uav-market). This is after the fact that the global commercial UAV market size was valued at $500 million USD; so using that number, a 17% increase over an 8-year span of $500 million USD equates to about an increase of $10.5 million USD per year. The government (public operations) will remain to control the majority of the market through this forecast with a 40% contribution to global UAV revenue in 2013, but as illustrated in the graph created by Grand View Research; the Energy and Other revenue categories increase substantially as the year’s progress.  With the announcement of Amazon Prime Air and the increased development of VR (virtual reality), I think the UAV technology will continue to prosper and become heavily integrated in the national air space.

Works Cited

Blom, J. D. (2010). Unmanned Aerial Vehicles: A Historical Perspective (Ser. 37, pp. 45-54) (United States, US Army, Combat Studies Institute). Fort Leavenworth, KS: US Army Combined Arms Center. Retrieved April 20, 2016, from http://usacac.army.mil/cac2/cgsc/carl/download/csipubs/OP37.pdf

Civil Operations (Non-Governmental). (2016, March 15). Retrieved April 20, 2016, from https://www.faa.gov/uas/civil_operations/

Commercial UAV Market Size & Analysis Research Report, 2022. (2015, November). Retrieved April 20, 2016, from http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/commercial-uav-market

Huerta, M. (2016, January 22). At 30-day mark, UAS registration progress encouraging. Retrieved April 20, 2016, from https://www.transportation.gov/fastlane/uas-registration-encouraging

Lavars, N. (2016, January 3). DJI launches new software to block drones wandering into dangerous areas. Retrieved April 20, 2016, from http://www.gizmag.com/dji-drone-software-geofencing/41123/?li_source=LI

Model Aircraft Operations. (2016, March 15). Retrieved April 20, 2016, from https://www.faa.gov/uas/model_aircraft/

Public Operations (Governmental). (2016, March 15). Retrieved April 20, 2016, from https://www.faa.gov/uas/public_operations/