DOT’s Inspector General (IG) plans to begin an audit this month of FAA’s current processes for approving civil unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) operations and overseeing their safe operation, noting “the significant and complex challenges” of safely integrating UAS into the national airspace system.
UAS technology is rapidly advancing, with a vast array of potential commercial applications, such as filmmaking, precision agriculture, and package delivery. Some analysts have predicted that as much as $91 billion will be invested in UAS technology worldwide over the next decade. However, until recently, FAA has prohibited commercial UAS operations with very limited exceptions due to the lack of regulations governing their use.
Since Congress granted FAA the authority in the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 to determine whether some UAS could operate prior to the establishment of regulations without an airworthiness certificate, the agency since September 2014 has approved over 1,200 commercial UAS to operate by exempting them from certification requirements, the IG said.
The agency is averaging over 60 UAS-related incident reports per month. Some of the incidents did not pose a safety risk but others have involved reports of pilots altering course to avoid unmanned aircraft.
The full release can be found here.