Federal AviationAdministration

FAA Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Update

Presented to: MAPPS 2012 Summer Conference

By: Randy Willis, Acting Air Traffic Manager,

FAA UAS Integration Office

Date: July 12, 2012

2Federal AviationAdministration

UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Overview• FAA Role• Reorganization – UAS Integration Office• Vision• Perspectives• Critical UAS Integration Issues• Current UAS Operations

– Certificate of Waiver or Authorizations (COAs)

• Current Integration Activities• Legislation Summary• Test Range Selection• A Look Ahead

3Federal AviationAdministration

UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

FAA Role• FAA is a Regulator

– Must ensure the safety of operations in the National Airspace System

• FAA is a Service Provider– Must preserve the efficiency

of all of the airspace delegated to the United States

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

FAA UAS Reorganization

• UAS Integration Office, AFS-80– Establishing a division-level organization reporting to

the Director of Flight Standards– Single executive focal point

• James H. “Jim” Williams (started March 26)

– Combining former Air Traffic and Flight Standards UAS offices

• Unmanned Aircraft Program Office (UA PO), AFS-407• Unmanned Aircraft Systems Group (UASG), AJV-13

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Vision Statement

• Safe, efficient, and timely integration of UAS into the airspace– Safe

• Because that is the FAA Mission!

– Efficient• FAA is committed to reduce delays and increase

system reliability

– Timely• FAA is dedicated to supporting this exciting new

technology

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Perspectives on UAS Integration into the National Airspace System (NAS)

• Today – Accommodation

• Mid-term – Integration into the NAS

• Long-term – Integration into the

NextGen NAS

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Who is Operating UAS in the NAS?

• Public Use Aircraft – Certificate of Waiver or Authorization (COA)– Department of Agriculture

– Department of Commerce

– Department of Defense

– Department of Energy

– Department of Homeland Security

– Department of Interior

– Department of Justice

– NASA

– State Universities

– Federal/State/Local Law Enforcement

• Civil Aircraft – Special Airworthiness Certificates in the Experimental Category and Special Flight Permits issued coast to coast– Raytheon

– AAI Corporation

– General Atomics

– Boeing

– Others

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Where Are UAS Operating?

• UAS are operated in most classes of airspace

• Currently, flight over populated areas has not been approved

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

How Are UAS Being Used?

• System Development• Operational Missions• Training for Ops Missions• Research• Sensor Development & Testing• Marketing• Border Patrol• Firefighting• Disaster Relief• Search and Rescue

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Authorization Required?

• Activities completely contained in active Special Use Airspace (Restricted and Warning Areas)– No FAA approval required - range rules apply

• Private recreational use – Advisory Circular 91-57, Model Aircraft Operating

Standards

• COA– Only available for Public operations– Agency determines pilot certification and

airworthiness

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Authorization Required?

• Special Airworthiness Certificate in the Experimental Category and Special Flight Permits for production flight testing– Only means of access currently being used by

civil operators– FAA determines airworthiness– No commercial operations– FAA Order 8130.34, Airworthiness

Certification of Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Optionally Piloted Aircraft

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

COA Types

• Standard• Renewal

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Special COAs

• DoD / FAA Memorandum of Agreement• Non-Joint Use Military Airfield• Over Military Lands

• Disaster Relief COA• DoD (Predator and Global Hawk)• Customs & Border Protection (Predator)

• Emergency COA– Issued to proponent that already has a COA to

operate in response to an emergency situation in another location

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Examples of Disaster/Emergency COAs

• Disaster Relief COAs– Haitian Relief (January – February 10)– Red River Flooding (CBP) – North Dakota (March 10)– Mississippi Canyon (Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill) (June 10)

• Emergency/Humanitarian COAs– Japanese Earthquake/Tsunami (March 11)– Red River Flooding (UND) – North Dakota (March 10)– Oil delivery for Nome, Alaska (March 12)– Numerous Law Enforcement

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

•COA Applications Submitted by Proponent

•All data as of 5/31/2012

COA Operator Statistics

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

•COA Applications Approved

•All data as of 5/31/2012

COA Approval Statistics

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Critical UAS Integration Issues

• Unmanned aircraft reliability• Aircraft certification standards• Control station (cockpit) layout/certification• Pilot qualification standards• Dedicated, protected spectrum• Sense and avoid capability• NextGen ground systems design• ATC Interoperability

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Current Integration Products

• FAA Civil/Public UAS NAS Integration Roadmap (UAS Integration Office, AFS-80)– Recommendations/inputs from the UAS Aviation

Rulemaking Committee– Projected for Summer 2012

• FAA Concept of Operations (ConOps) (FAA NextGen Organization)– Projected for September 2012

• Comprehensive Plan (JPDO)– Projected for Fall 2012

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 107, Rule: Small UAS

• Purpose of the regulation– Enable small UAS to operate safely in limited portions of

the NAS and gather data• Focus

– Enable the widest range of activity that can be safely conducted within the shortest rulemaking timeframe

• Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to be released later this year

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Legislation Summary

• UAS Provisions– FAA Modernization

and Reform Act of 2012

– National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) 2012

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UAS Integration Office Update

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Legislation Summary

• FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012– Enacted into law on February 14, 2012

• Subtitle B – Unmanned Aircraft Systems – Sections 331-336

• Many tasks with timelines included• Most prominent task calls for establishment of

six UAS test sites

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Test Range Selection Plan

• Request for Comment published in Federal Register on March 9, 2012

• 60 day comment period• Webinars during comment period

– April 10th (455 participants)– April 11th (371 participants)

• Screening Information Request (SIR)• Selection Process• Six sites selected, December 2012

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

A Look Ahead • Today/Ongoing

– Improve COA guidance and process– Refine FAA Civil/Public UAS NAS Integration Roadmap– Plan/oversee research and development activities– Gather safety data!!

• Near term– Implement advanced mitigations (Ground Based Sense

and Avoid (GBSAA), others)– Increase NAS access through small UAS rule

• Long term– Reduce dependency on COAs, move towards integration

into the NextGen environment

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

UAS Integration

SAFE!

EFFICIENT!

TIMELY!

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UAS Integration Office Update

July 12, 2012

Questions?