A federal judge has thrown out the first fine against a commercial drone operator, as the Federal Aviation Administration struggles to regulate the fast-developing industry.
Judge Patrick Geraghty of the National Transportation Safety Board, who heard the appeal of the $10,000 FAA fine against Raphael Pirker, ruled Thursday that there was “no enforceable FAA rule” or regulation that applied to a model aircraft such as the one Pirker was flying.
The FAA issued a statement Friday saying it would appeal the ruling to the full NTSB, which has the effect of delaying the decision.
“The agency is concerned that this decision could impact the safe operation of the national airspace system and the safety of people and property on the ground,” the FAA statement said.
Brendan Schulman, a New York lawyer with Kramer, Levin, Naftalis and Frankel who represented Pirker, said the judge’s decision was important because of uncertainty about what is allowed for drones.
“I think it’s an extremely significant decision because for the first time ever we have guidance from a judge on whether the 2007 ban on commercial drone operations is legally enforceable,” Schulman said. “That’s guidance that many people in the industry have been looking for, for a long time.”
In 2012, Congress ordered the FAA to develop comprehensive regulations for drones to fly safely in the same airspace as passenger planes by September 2015.
So far the FAA has issued a roadmap for how it will develop the regulations and named six groups to test various aspects of drone safety, such as how to prevent drones from colliding with planes and how to have them land safely if they lose contact with remote pilots. But those decisions came months behind schedule.
An FAA proposal for drones weighing less than 55 pounds is expected later this year.
FAA Administrator Michael Huerta assured a House panel last month that the agency would develop its regulations in stages “with the overriding concern that we want to maximize the highest levels of safety.”
The FAA projects 7,500 drones will be flying within five years, if regulations are completed, because they can be used for flying that is too expensive or dangerous for planes or helicopters with people on board.
An industry group, the Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International, projects there will be 100,000 jobs generating $82 billion in economic activity in the decade after the aircraft are allowed in general airspace.
But drone regulation has been haphazard until now. FAA issues permits to hundreds of public entities on a case-by-case basis, for police to survey crime scenes from the air, firefighters to scan burning buildings and universities to conduct research. But only one commercial drone permit was issued so far, to fly in the Arctic to study wildlife.
Meanwhile, real-estate agents, moviemakers, farmers and other commercial operations are eager to use drones.
“There are countless businesses with really exciting applications and ideas for using the technology that have really been stifled from using the technology because of the bureaucratic delay and the purported ban on commercial operation,” Schulman said.
Against this backdrop, the FAA sought to fine Pirker under its regulation against operating “an aircraft in a careless or reckless manner so as to endanger the life or property of another,” which the agency argued applied to drones.
Pirker was fined for flying a Ritewing Zephyr drone Oct. 17, 2011, around the University of Virginia in Charlottesville with a camera that sent video to the ground. He was being paid by Lewis Communications for video of the campus and medical center.
Geraghty, the judge hearing the case, called applying the “careless or reckless” standard to all aircraft could lead to the “risible argument” that it applied to paper planes or a balsa glider. Previous FAA rules have exempted model planes and hobbyists.
Geraghty found that because FAA historically exempted model aircraft from its enforcement, Pirker’s drone didn’t qualify for a fine under current regulations.
Schulman said drone operators will have to consult with their lawyers about whether and how they might fly, as the FAA develops its regulations.
“The impact of the decision on any specific company or person is a matter for that company and its lawyers to evaluate,” Schulman said.
By: Bart Jansen (USA Today)
Click here to view source article.
