FAA

Knock, Knock. Your UAV Was There

Posted on by mecicon
If technology can make it possible to catch irresponsible drone operators in the act while improving flight safety for manned and unmanned aircraft, shouldn’t we be using it?
By Patrick C. Miller

Normally I don’t like to visit the same subject two weeks in a row, but a brief conversation with the FAA this week and a couple interviews for an upcoming article got me to thinking about drone safety once again.

I called Les Dorr at the FAA to ask him about the agency’s recent warning to drone operators. Because of a large spike this year in the number of pilots who’ve reported seeing UAS near their aircraft, the agency wants drone operators to know that flying too close to manned aircraft can result in the FAA levying civil and criminal penalties.

The FAA’s concern is understandable, although it begs the question: How successful has the agency (or anyone else, for that matter) been in catching and taking action against reported violators? After all, in 2014 and this year, there have been nearly 900 pilot reports. But after saying that the FAA has initiated more than 20 enforcement cases, Dorr added: “Several of the cases involve UAS operating near other aircraft.”

Dorr explained how difficult it is to actually catch a drone operator flying in restricted airspace, even when a pilot report is fairly specific. By the time the FAA notifies the proper local law enforcement agency and an officer can be sent to the area, there’s a good chance the offending party will no longer be there. And even if he or she is, it’s often difficult to spot the drone pilot from the ground.

So the likelihood of a UAS airspace violator getting caught and suffering the consequences is quite low. As with Internet communications, anonymity has a tendency to cause people to say and do things that they usually wouldn’t. As long some—probably a few—UAS pilots know that there’s little chance of getting caught, they don’t feel compelled to observe airspace restrictions.

And that leads me to another discussion I had this week with Paul Jauregui of the Praetorian Group and Chris Eyhorn with DroneSense. Praetorian—a security firm—and DroneSense—a UAS startup company—partnered on a project to survey how many electronic devices in Austin, Texas, are connected to the Internet. A sensor developed by Praetorian was installed on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) owned and operated by DroneSense, which flew it over sections of Austin.

Essentially, the drone-mounted sensor interrogated the Internet-connected devices through the ZigBee Wi-Fi standard they use. Using this data, Praetorian created a map showing the types of devices and where they’re located. This data can help Praetorian develop better methods to keep Wi-Fi networks secure.

What does this have to do with UAS safety and catching irresponsible drone pilots in the act? If an airborne sensor light enough to be carried by a small UAS can obtain information from an Internet-connected device the size of a lightbulb in a building on the ground, why can’t similar technology be used to link a drone to its owner?

It occurs to me that we have the technology to help solve the UAS safety problem. Every UAV sold should be equipped with an embedded chip that contains an electronic ID number registered to the aircraft owner. The information should be uploaded to an FAA database.

A sensor similar to the one Praetorian has developed could be installed on commercial aircraft operating in high-traffic areas or be made available to law enforcement agencies. At the touch of a button, the sensor would record the UAV’s ID number, as well as the time of the contact and the GPS coordinates of where it occurred.

Would UAS operators be as bold about pushing the regulatory envelope if they knew there was a good chance the FAA or a law enforcement operator might coming knocking on their doors? I think not.

http://www.uasmagazine.com/blog/article/2015/08/knock-knock-your-uav-was-there

FAA warns UAS operators to stay away from manned aircraft

Posted on by mecicon
By Patrick C. Miller | August 20, 2015
  • Because of an increase in drone sightings by pilots, the FAA is warning UAS operators that flying drones near manned aircraft is dangerous and illegal.
    PHOTO: UAS MAGAZINE

Concerned about an increase in pilots reporting encounters with unmanned aerial systems (UAS), the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) wants drone pilots to understand that operating their aircraft around manned aircraft is dangerous and illegal.

While the FAA said unauthorized UAS operators can face stiff fines and criminal charges, including possible jail time, catching them remains problematic.

FAA spokesperson Les Dorr told UAS Magazine: “As you can appreciate, it’s a challenge when we get a pilot report and sometimes the report is not very specific. Even when it is specific—say the pilot says ‘I saw a quadcopter 200 feet off my port wing and I was 3.5 miles from the end of the runway’—that’s still a pretty big area in which to try to identify the operator.”

Dorr described the action the agency takes in such circumstances.

“What we would typically do is notify the appropriate law enforcement organization and have them try to see if they could identify the operator—but it is a challenge,” he added.

Brian Wynne, president and CEO of the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), said the organization supports enforcement action against careless and reckless UAS operators who violate restricted airspace.

“Stricter enforcement will not only punish irresponsible operators, it will also serve as a deterrent to others who may misuse the technology,” he noted.

Last year, the FAA said it received a total of 238 UAS sightings from pilots, but this year had received 650 such reports by early August. The agency said it has levied civil penalties for a number of unauthorized flights in various parts of the country, and has dozens of open enforcement cases.

Asked how many and what types of penalties the FAA has levied, Dorr checked with the FAA’s general counsel, and responded: “We have initiated more than 20 enforcement cases. We have settled five cases in which operators paid civil penalties. We have proposed penalties in at least five other cases. Several of the cases involve UAS operating near other aircraft.”

The FAA said pilots reported seeing 16 unmanned aircraft in June of 2014, and 36 the following month. This year, 138 pilots reported seeing drones at altitudes of up to 10,000 feet during the month of June, and another 137 in July.

In addition, the agency said firefighters battling wildfires in the western U.S. have been forced to halt operations on several occasions for safety reasons when they spotted one or more unmanned aircraft in their immediate vicinity.

Wynne called on the FAA to finalize its small UAS rules, which would require all UAS operators to follow the safety programming of a community-based organization or abide by new UAS rules for commercial operators.

“Once the rules are finalized, consumers will no longer be able to fly without any oversight or education,” he said.

The FAA said it will continue to work closely with industry partners through the “Know Before You Fly” campaign to educate UAS users about where they can operate within the rules. The agency is also supporting the National Interagency Fire Center’s “If You Fly, We Can’t” efforts to help reduce interference with firefighting operations.

The agency also said it’s working closely with the law enforcement community to identify and investigate unauthorized unmanned aircraft operations. The FAA encourages the public to report unauthorized drone operations to local law enforcement and help discourage dangerous, illegal UAS activity.

http://www.uasmagazine.com/articles/1210/faa-warns-uas-operators-to-stay-away-from-manned-aircraft

Researchers want to make license plates for drones

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42-75650152

A drone flies over a ravine as the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office demonstrates a search and rescue operation, Friday, Aug. 14, 2015, in Dublin, Calif.
Image: AP Photo/Noah Berger
Headshot_2015_chrisperkins_1

By Chris Perkins
The rapid rise of amateur-piloted drones has created somewhat of a regulatory nightmare. Countless reports of pilots spotting drones near airports as well as the recent fracas over drones impeding firefighters are testament to that.

Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley are attempting to tackle this issue with license plates reports Technology Review.

Well, they’re not really license plates the way we know them.

The researchers call their invention LightCense and they use multicolored LED lights mounted to the underside of an Unmanned Arial Vehicle (UAV) that flash in a unique pattern. This pattern can be decoded by a smartphone app, specially designed cameras or memorized by a person, though that last one seems a little less likely.

Aislan Foina, director of the Cal Unmanned lab at UC Berkley, says LightCense was inspired by automotive license plates, despite the differences in how they work. He and his team consider drones as being more related to cars than aircraft, which makes sense given their small size and (relatively) large numbers.

 

Image: LightCense

As of right now, there are no definitive plans to bring this tech to market, but Foina would like to see it go commercial at some point.

 

UAV regulation has been a major issue with the proliferation of affordable consumer drones.

UAV regulation has been a major issue with the proliferation of affordable consumer drones. Pilots at JFK recently had three separate close calls with UAVs flying in no-fly-zones in just one weekend.Drones are also posing a large threat to firefighters in California. The state’s chief of the Department of Forestry and Fire said that UAVs cause “immediate danger” to firefighting pilots in a recent press conference, reports the Los Angeles Times.

Many places, notably airports, are marked as no-fly zones but it’s almost impossible for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to prevent drones from flying in these areas. Due to the large amount of UAVs flying at any given time, the regulation for drones would need to be automated, in contrast with the FAA’s human-operated Air Traffic Control.

A proposal from NASA and Verizon would require all drones to connect to the Internet, enabling the ability for “geofencing.” Amazon — which is trying to start up a drone delivery service — also released a similar plan that would require non-Internet connected drones to fly below 200 feet. The appeal of LightCense is that it could be retrofitted to drones that aren’t connected to the Internet.

Assuming the proposal goes forward, LightCense could be a good way to keep older drones in the sky.

Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.

 

http://mashable.com/2015/08/19/license-plates-for-drones/

Stores Must Stop Drone Sales at New Jersey Airport

Posted on by mecicon

newark-airport

At least two stores inside Newark Liberty International Airport are selling drones despite federal rules prohibiting flying them near airports.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said it will demand the stores stop selling drones “immediately.”

“The Port Authority shares the aviation community’s safety concerns about the growing presence of drones around the region’s airports and is strongly opposed to the sale of drones at terminal shops,” Ron Marsico, a Port Authority spokesman, said in a statement.

Brookstone, on the secure side of Terminal C, and Hudson News, in Terminal A, sell remote-controlled flying objects, NJ.com reported (http://bit.ly/1JhYc8Q) Wednesday.

Commercial airline pilots at Newark Liberty have reported seeing drones recently, including four separate sightings on Aug. 9.

The Federal Aviation Administration said last week that drones had been spotted 650 times this year as of Aug. 9, compared with 238 sightings for all of 2014. The agency is now proposing to further restrict drone flying, including a 400-foot maximum altitude.

Laura Samuels, a spokeswoman for the Hudson Group, Hudson News’ parent company, said Tuesday the items were toys and did not threaten aviation. She said they would be removed from the Terminal A store.

“We’re not here to cause panic in the streets,” she said. “If it is uncomfortable for customers or the airport, we will do what we always do in that situation, and that’s remove them. And that’s what I’m going to recommend we do.”

It was unclear whether there were any limits on the sale of drones at an airport.

The FAA and Brookstone did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

———

Information from: NJ.com, http://www.nj.com

How the FAA Boss is Keeping the Skies Safe

Posted on by mecicon
By HE&IT
Aug 17, 2015 – 7:17:43 AM		  

 
Federal Aviation Administration Administrator Michael Huerta

Last June Michael Huerta was named one of “8 Most Influential People in Drones” by dronedefinition.com. The group of eight included thought leaders who want to deliver packages to your door via a drone, mount cameras on unmanned aerial vehicles, and sell drones that will follow you wherever you go.

Also in the lineup was a 20-something inventor who built his first drone using parts from a Nintendo Wii and a lawyer who took on the first ever Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) case against a drone – and won. FAA Administrator Michael Huerta was recognized as “the face of the organization that will ultimately decide the fate of commercial unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the United States.”

In a blog post on the transportation department’s website, Administrator Huerta, 57, said that the unmanned aircraft system (UAS) industry is changing faster than any segment of the aviation industry.

“So many bright minds are focused on advancing this technology. People are finding new ways to use these devices on almost a daily basis,” he wrote.

Huerta added that the FAA’s next step is to determine if and how unmanned aircraft operations in America can be safely expanded in partnership with three leading U.S. companies.

“CNN, PrecisionHawk, and BNSF Railroad have committed extensive resources toward research that will help us expand the range of FAA-approved UAS operations in the next few years,” Huerta continued.

“Their work will provide significant insight into how unmanned aircraft can be used to transform the way certain industries do business – whether that means reporting on a natural disaster, checking on the health of crops, or making sure trains run on time,” he said.

In December 2013, the FAA selected six public entities to develop unmanned aircraft systems research and test sites around the country. In one interview, Huerta called the selection of the six test sites “an important step in the evolution of unmanned aircraft in the United States.”

“This is a technology that shows great promise but also brings significant challenges, so our test sites provide a structured framework where we’re able to conduct research, conduct test operations, and really understand how we can safely integrate these aircraft into the national airspace,” he said.

The FAA chose the six unmanned aircraft systems research and test site operators after a 10-month selection process involving 25 proposals from 24 states. The test sites – University of Alaska, Nevada, New York’s Griffiss International Airport, North Dakota Department of Commerce, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) – are designed to collect data for the FAA concerning safe integration of unmanned aircraft systems into the national airspace, which is expected in 2015.

HE&IT magazine’s Career Voices department features Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi’s Lone Star Unmanned Aircraft Systems Center, one of the six test sites selected by the FAA to research drone technology.

Huerta has also addressed hot button issues about privacy concerns and the commercial use of drones.

“The thing that we care about, first and foremost, is the safety of our national airspace system. And these aircraft operate very differently, and they operate in the same airspace with a wide variety of other users,” he told NPR.

Just before the holidays last December, Huerta and representatives of the Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International, the Academy of Model Aeronautics, and the Small UAV Coalition joined to launch a “Know Before You Fly” website and educational campaign. Amazon, 3D Robotics, Airware, and camera manufacturer GoPro are some of the Small UAV Coalition members.

The knowbeforeyoufly.org website summarized the rules that apply to each of three categories of users: recreational, business, and the public.

Know Before You Fly

1. Don’t fly above 400 feet.
2. Keep your unmanned aircraft within sight.
3. Don’t operate near people or crowds.
4. Do not fly an unmanned aircraft within five miles of an airport without notifying FAA Air Traffic Control or the airport operator. These conversations with Air Traffic Control are critical for safety.
5. You may only fly unmanned aircraft for hobby or recreational uses–you cannot earn money or use it for your business unless you get prior authorization from the FAA.
6. Please respect the privacy of everyone. No taking pictures of people if they are not expecting it!
7. Join a model aircraft club to help you learn how to safely operate and enjoy your aircraft.

In February, the FAA offered safety rules for small unmanned aircraft (under 55 pounds) conducting non-recreational operations. Under the proposed rules, the person flying a small unmanned aircraft would be an “operator.” An operator would have to be at least 17 years old, pass an aeronautical knowledge test, and obtain an FAA UAS operator certificate. To maintain certification, the operator would have to pass the FAA knowledge tests every 24 months.

The new rules also propose operating limitations designed to minimize risks to other aircraft and people and property on the ground:

1. The operator must discontinue the flight when continuing would pose a hazard to other aircraft, people, or property.
2. A small UAS may not fly over people, except those directly involved with the flight.
3. Flights should be limited to 500 feet altitude and no faster than 100 mph.
4. Operators must stay out of airport flight paths and restricted airspace areas and obey any FAA Temporary Flight Restrictions.

The rule maintains the existing prohibition against operating in a careless or reckless manner. It also would bar an operator from allowing any object to be dropped from the UAS.

The FAA is also asking for comment on how the agency can leverage the Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) test site program and an upcoming UAS Center of Excellence to further spur innovation at “innovation zones.”

Next-Generation Technology

FAA employees work with next-generation technology at airports, regional offices and centers, and headquarters in Washington, D.C. It takes the combined efforts of air traffic control, engineering, safety and security, acquisition, contracts, or IT.

The workforce includes:

Air Traffic Controllers
Aviation Safety Inspectors
Airways Transportation Systems Specialists
Engineers
Program Managers
Technicians

Learn more about the different types of FAA occupations in the Career Fields section

 

http://blackengineer.com/artman2/publish/HISPANIC_ENGINEER_55/How-the-FAA-Boss-is-Keeping-the-Skies-Safe.shtml

 

Capt. ‘Sully’ on drone rules: ‘We have a responsibility to do this right’

Posted on by mecicon

Take it from a guy who knows a thing or two about mid-air collisions, drones are a growing threat to civil aviation.

The use of drones—both recreationally and commercially—is on the rise, offering a boost to a booming drone industry expected to create billions of dollars worth of economic activity in the U.S. over the next decade. But significant uptick in close encounters between drones and manned aircraft—a quadrupling, in fact—is pushing many to call for increased regulation and better enforcement of the regulations that are in place.

One of the more prominent voices bringing attention to the heightened risk of a drone-on-aircraft collision is Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger. Sullenberger, most readers will recall, is the now-retired US Airways pilot that in 2009 managed to safely land his Airbus A320 passenger jet in the Hudson River, saving all 155 persons aboard.

On a recent appearance on Face the Nation, Sullenberger—now an aviation safety expert—told host John Dickerson in no uncertain terms just how bad a collision between a passenger aircraft and a drone could get. “We have seen what a six-pound or an eight- pound bird can do to bring down an airplane,” Sullenberger said. “Imagine what a device containing hard parts like batteries and motors can do that might weigh 25 or possibly up to 55 pounds to bring down an airplane. It is not a matter of if it will happen. It is a matter of when it will happen.”

Data on drone sightings by pilots released this week by the FAA would seem to support that assessment. In all of 2014 the FAA logged 238 drone sightings by manned aircraft. As of last week the FAA had tallied 650 drone sightings reported in 2015. That puts 2015 on pace to quadruple the number of drones spotted by pilots last year—an alarming trend given the potentially catastrophic consequences.

In a conversation with Fortune, Sullenberger emphasizes that he’s not making an alarmist prediction, nor does he want to see regulation stifle innovation in the emerging unmanned aircraft industry. What he does want to see is better risk management, better regulation of the recreational drone industry, and more enforcement of those regulations when drone operators do what he describes as “stupid, reckless, dangerous things.”

“It’s important to address this inherent tension between getting it fast and getting it right,” Sullenberger says. “How do we balance between undue delay and forcing people who fly to accept risk that they really shouldn’t have to accept? We do need to have a way for people to address business opportunities. We do need a way for people to use emerging technologies. But it should not be and need not be at the expense of having people who fly accept a level or risk that they should not have to accept. It is much more important to get it right than to get it fast.”

The ongoing debate over how exactly how to strike a balance between public safety and freedom to innovate escalated in June when Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) put forth a piece of draft legislation known as the Consumer Drone Safety Act. The proposed legislation would dictate when, where, and how recreational drones could be operated and require makers of drones to pre-install certain tamper-proof safety failsafes on recreational drones. “If we don’t act now, it’s only a matter of time before we have a tragedy on our hands,” Senator Feinstein said in a statement, echoing a growing refrain among advocates of increased drone regulation.

Some in the drone industry called the act legislative overkill, arguing that innovation in the industry comes from the kind of freedom to tinker that the Consumer Drone Safety Act would restrict. But Sullenberger says he supports the kinds of measures outlined in the proposed bill. “The version I saw when it was introduced, I support,” he says of the bill. “I think it goes a long way toward codifying certain requirements that could mitigate at least the risks that are known, the ones that we’ve identified. It goes a long way toward protecting the traveling public from the downside of this new technology as it’s being used currently.”

Currently, the technology is mostly being used recreationally in the United States. The FAA only recently handed out its 1,000th permit for commercial drone operation. Meanwhile, the Consumer Electronics Association estimates that 700,000 hobbyists will purchase drones this year, up 63% from 2014. These recreational users are largely unregulated and difficult to identify and prosecute when they do break the limited regulations that exist. That makes for an environment in which dangerous behavior can flourish, Sullenberger says.

In response to the uptick in drone sightings, two leading drone groups—the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International and the Academy of Model Aeronautics—issued statements last week urging the FAA to step up enforcement of recreational drone rules. They also urged the agency to quickly finalize a set of small unmanned aircraft systems regulations that have been in the works for years.

The finalizing of those rules—which would largely apply to commercial drone operators—will likely bring even more drones into the sky, but Sullenberger says he worries somewhat less about commercial operators. “In many cases you have licensed pilots who have the knowledge—they understand airspace requirements and the rules of flying,” he says. “I think that’s much less of a concern than the recreational side.”

Even so, he says, if we’re truly going to integrate drones—both commercial and recreational—into the national airspace alongside manned aircraft, even small drones are going to have to meet some of the same requirements as manned aircraft. Those include a means to electronically identify themselves to air traffic controllers and other aircraft and some way to see and avoid other objects in the sky. That’s going to require some leaps forward in technology and it’s going to take some time.

“Making safety a core business function is really what we’re working toward in aviation, and it’s an approach that’s paid dividends,” he says. “That’s the approach we must take with this issue as well. We have a responsibility to do this right.”

http://fortune.com/2015/08/17/captain-sully-drones/

 

Drone use shot down by Aspen Skiing Company over ski areas

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by

aspenskijump

by Chad Abraham, Aspen Daily News

The Aspen Skiing Co. has informed the photographers with whom it contracts that they are not allowed to use aerial drones on the four ski mountains, clarifying what had been a gray area as popularity grows for the devices.

The policy, announced Thursday, also holds true for the public, and the regulation mirrors U.S. Forest Service rules on drones. The federal agency prohibits their use on public land unless a drone flier has obtained an exemption from the Federal Aviation Administration.

SkiCo decided to formalize its drone policy in writing and on its website because it is simply too dangerous, said spokesman Jeff Hanle.

“It’s way too risky to have those things flying around,” he said, noting the danger to people riding chairlifts and the proximity of Buttermilk to the Aspen-Pitkin County Airport. “Buttermilk is right there in the flight path.”

A man was cited for a misdemeanor in January for flying a drone near Buttermilk during the X Games. ESPN, which produces the extreme sports event, obtained permission from the FAA for the drones it used to film, Hanle said.

Others who have the FAA exemption for local drone use include producers of films and commercials. But as the technology has progressed and prices have dropped, drones mounted with cameras have exploded in popularity for people using them recreationally.

Matt Hobbs, owner of locally based Vital Films, has conducted multiple shoots on the ski areas. He’s also filmed public service announcements using a drone for, ironically, the Forest Service, he said.

Until the Forest Service established its zero-tolerance policy on the devices, film- and commercial-makers were in “uncharted territory,” Hobbs said. “The biggest thing, from my understanding, is that airspace [away from airports] can’t be controlled, just where you take off and land from.

“Everything’s just so gray now, which is why we chose to back off for now.”

He said his company now only flies drones on private property.

Hobbs provided a Forest Service memo issued in March that cites the FAA’s position on drones: “Operators who wish to fly an unmanned aircraft for civil use must obtain an FAA airworthiness certificate. Certificates are issued with accompanying operational limitations that are appropriate to the applicant’s operation.”

The Colorado Passenger Tramway Safety Board, which has oversight over ski lifts, mandates that helicopters used in commercial filming stay a certain distance away from ski lifts, Hanle said, adding he assumed the same regulation would cover drones. Efforts to reach a representative of the tramway board were unsuccessful.

SkiCo has used drones in its own commercial efforts, and “we’ll now make sure we’re permitted and check with the FAA,” Hanle said.

 

http://www.aspendailynews.com/section/home/167850

Amazon’s (Not-so) Secret Drone Test Site

Posted on by mecicon

by: Gary Mortimer • 16 August 2015

A rumour and purple tent was all it took for GeekWire’s Jacob Dement to claim a secret Amazon drone testing site.

There I was, air conditioner blasting in my Car2Go as I sat in front of a red gate on a gravel road in rural Snoqualmie, Wash. Multiple locals told me this was what I had come looking for: the entrance to Amazon’s secret drone testing site.

I wasn’t lucky enough to show up on a day when Amazon’s prototype delivery drone was being tested. But then I pulled up Google Maps to try to get a sense of where exactly I was.

And that’s when I saw it.

This satellite image, taken on a previous day, shows activity in the area beyond the gate. You can see a couple dark objects on the ground at either end of the image, what looks like a purple tent, a white van and some other vehicles — exactly where people in the area told me they’ve seen Amazon’s team set up.

Does it really matter if some Amazon employees are off multirotor flying somewhere?

We know they are!

Lets find some facts for Jacob, all thanks to published data from the FAA.

Long time sUAS News readers will be aware of our Drone Spotters collection of drone tail numbers from around the world, set up to monitor who was selling what to where. I notice Amazon registered its third official drone. N394PA appeared on the register just last Thursday.

We can learn some stuff from their naming, its a mark 24, so I think it’s fair to assume the 24th type of prototype and its serial number 14 so there are at least 14 mark 24’s out in the wild.

It joins N391PA and N392PA, serial numbers 6 and 8 respectively.

N393PA is not going to happen as it’s already allocated to an autogyro.

The questions I would ask is have they distributed other airframes to test simultaneously around the world and are Amazon just creating marketing footage in the USA?

Flying around a bit at the end of a track is hardly testing detect sense and avoid. Its not probing the platforms sensitivity to EMF. Its not testing a whole host of things.

Jacob, please do me a favour pop back and see if you can find a second site. One about 5km away. One that Amazon might be flying test deliveries to. That would be the sort of thing I would be testing to a track in the middle of nowhere.

Jacob also head off to Walmart and buy a scanner Unidenscanner

Then listen out on the local air traffic frequencies just in case the Amazon guys are doing the right thing and calling their position for VFR traffic in the local area.

It might also be worth dropping into Fall City Airport and finding out if any Amazon execs have flown in. They probably have a working relationship with the test team.

I would do it myself but its Sunday morning in South Africa and time to go out for a family breakfast. (some time passes) After breakfast I found the spot, skip to the bottom.

Here’s what Amazons Paul Misener, Vice President, Global Public Policy had to say last year in their FAA 333 exemption.

Our R&D operations will provide for a level of safety that far exceeds the level of safety required by FAA for hobbyists and manufacturers of model aircraft. The following operating procedures will apply during the R&D testing conducted under this exemption request:

  1. The sUAS will (i) have a maximum weight of less than 55 pounds; (ii) be rotor‐ powered via a battery source; and (iii) be U.S.‐registered and display marks in accordance with 14 C.F.R. Part 45, Subpart C.5
  2. Our sUAS R&D testing under this exemption will be conducted (i) within the visual line of sight of the operator and/or one or more observers; (ii) at less than 400 feet AGL; and (iii) within Class G airspace.
  3. The operations will be conducted in a confined area over isolated Amazon private property located a sufficient distance away from (i) any airport, heliport, seaplane base, spaceport or other location with aviation activities; (ii) any densely populated areas; and (iii) any military or U.S. government installations or airfields.6
  4. All operations will remain within the lateral and vertical boundaries of the operating area, taking into account all factors, including wind, gross weight and glide distances, that may affect the capability of the sUAS to remain within the airspace boundary; moreover, the integrity of the operating area will be reinforced by geo‐fencing,7 including the ceiling height of no more than 400 feet AGL.
  5. Our sUAS R&D testing under this exemption will be conducted (i) under the supervision of a designated pilot in command (PIC) who has final responsibility for the operation in accordance with 14 C.F.R. § 91.3 and either (A) holds a current FAA private pilot certificate issued under 14 C.F.R. Part 61, Subpart E, a higher FAA pilot certification, or a FAA‐recognized equivalent8 or (B) has completed FAA private pilot ground instruction and passed the FAA private pilot written examination or FAA‐recognized equivalent; and (ii) using only operators that have completed training on the normal, abnormal, and emergency procedures in specific details and demonstrated proficiency with the sUAS being operated.
  6. No operator or observer will engage in, nor may an operator or observer permit, any activity during a critical phase of flight which could distract any operator or observer from the performance of his/her duties or interfere in any way with the proper conduct of his/her duties.
  7. Operators will maintain the sUAS system in a condition for safe operation, and conduct a pre‐flight inspection prior to each flight so as to ensure that the sUAS, control station, data link equipment, payload, and support equipment are in a condition for safe operation and in a configuration appropriate for the purpose of the intended flight.
  8. The operators and observers will maintain two‐way communications with each other during all operations; if unable to maintain two‐way communications, or if any condition occurs that may otherwise cause the operation to be unsafe, the operator will immediately conclude the operation.
  9. Each sUAS will safely stop operating and return automatically to a specific location on Amazon’s private property if the communications link is lost.
  10. For each sUAS, the observer will have the ability to press a physical button, that will be within his/her reach at all times, that reduces power to the vehicle so as to force a controlled landing; both the hardware and communication for this safety system will be physically separate from the sUAS flight control systems.
  11. Testing operations will be conducted on private property, and only Amazon employees, contract personnel, and invitees will be invited to the operations area; security measures will be put in place to deter unauthorized access.

A gentle VR flight and I found where it is

amazonssecretsite

amazonssecretsite2

I guess distance is a relative, living as I do in Africa 45 minutes very often is the minimum you have to travel for more life. I have lived in places where an aeroplane was the only way to the shops.

With that in mind, this line…

So I grabbed a Car2Go in Seattle and made the 45 minute drive out into the middle of nowhere. It’s the kind of place where “No Trespassing” signs outnumber doorbells and people don’t seem fond of strangers wandering on to their front porches.

Then checking, its 6 minutes to the nearest African sounding joint, Sahara Pizza (tenuous I know) Raised a smile here. Also amusing the railway stations of startup and goldbar to the right of the title map. That’s why I made it so wide.

 

 

http://www.suasnews.com/2015/08/37836/amazons-secret-drone-test-site/