Topic 3: UAVs: A Commercial Future?

The idea of having Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) flying alongside commercial passenger jets and other aircraft seems like something out of a sci-fy movie, but this idea is actually becoming a reality. UAVs have become a popular topic in recent years and the potential commercial uses of these aircraft have created a lot of excitement and questions.

UAVs are not a new idea by any means, in fact, during World War I the Navy funded research to develop an unmanned aircraft that was essentially a flying bomb. The military continues to use UAVs today for surveillance and reconnaissance, as well as combat missions. The military frequently operates unmanned aircraft in U.S. airspace for research, development, testing and training (Elias, 2012). Using UAVs inside the United States for a variety of reasons has been a hot topic along with the issues involved with doing so.

One of the issues involved with using these UAVs in the United States is how to integrate them into flying in the National Airspace System (NAS) with other manned aircraft. Obviously having unmanned aircraft flying around amongst all of the manned aircraft could create some safety issues. Other concerns include airspace restrictions, security risks and disrupting manned flight operations (Elias, 2012).

The first and most obvious safety issue is the ability of the UAV to sense and avoid other aircraft. To date, there is no suitable technology available that will allow UAVs the ability to sense and avoid other aircraft. This lack of available technology limits unmanned aircraft to line-of-sight scenarios where operators on the ground provide the see and avoid capabilities. The creation of Automated Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) technology, which is required to be installed on all manned aircraft by 2020, may be the future in detect and avoid technology for UAVs (Elias, 2012).

Once that issue is resolved, the next focus needs to be on reducing risks to people and property on the ground. If communications with the UAV are lost, the aircraft needs to be able to realize this and automatically return to its' base so that it does not run out of fuel and crash into a populated area (Elias, 2012).

Even though these aircraft are unmanned, human factors still plays a huge role in the safety of their operation. The most important human factors related issues are operator interfaces and controls and the training and qualification requirements of pilots, among other involved personnel. Currently the Air Force requires their drone pilots to be pilot-rated military officers, while the other branches of the military do not require their operators to be pilot-rated (Elias, 2012).

NASA is leading a project called the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration in the National Airspace System which is intended to contribute capabilities designed at reducing technical barriers related to safety and the operation challenges of UAVs routinely accessing the NAS (NASA, 2011).

Once the technology that allows these UAVs to detect and avoid other aircraft is developed and ready for implementation, I believe we will begin to see unmanned aircraft slowly be put to use in certain applications. I think that the FAA will create a certain set of regulations that pertain to UAVs and that pilot, and other personnel, training standards will be similar to that of which exist for current manned aircraft. I believe that the implementation of NextGen technology will help the advancement of UAVs and their uses in our NAS. I think that within the next ten years or so the use of UAVs inside the United States NAS will be extensive and may replace some current manned aircraft operations and create a more cost effective alternative.

Another issue that is popular when talking about UAVs and the practicability of their use in the United States, is the lack of regulation that exists to govern flight safety. Currently there are very few countries that have regulations which pertain specifically to UAV operations. With the idea of UAVs entering the commercial market and serving other purposes, regulations will need to be put in place to provide a safe operating environment. These regulations will set the tone for the UAV market and determine how their uses will be implemented (DeGarmo, 2004).

Currently in the United States, UAV flights that occur in the NAS that are not operated as model aircraft or under FAR part 101 (Moored Balloons, Kites, Unmanned Rockets, and Unmanned Free Balloons) must be approved under a certificate of authorization (COA) from the FAA. These COA guidelines were formed for the military to use when conducting their flights with UAVs in the NAS, but are now being applied to civil UAV operations. The process of obtaining a COA is a lengthy process and requires a lot of planning prior to the UAV mission. Each COA is reviewed by the regional FAA authority which results in differences in standards between the approving authority. More information on COAs, and how to obtain one, can be found here. Differences between civil and military procedures are also approved through separate FAA departments. With there being so much difference in approval standards, there is no clearly defined standard for users to follow when developing UAV applications. Without standards, the formation of regulations will be difficult (Weibel, 2005).

Another thing that is important to the formation of regulations for unmanned aircraft is development of the definition of a UAV and different types of classification. There is no universally accepted definition or standard classification for UAVs and without these, it will be difficult to make regulations and apply them. The formation of regulations related to UAV air traffic management, airworthiness and flight operations is another vital step that needs to be completed in order to enable the successful UAV integration in the NAS (Weibel, 2005).

I think that once these regulations are formed, UAV operation in the NAS will follow closely behind. This is assuming that the safety issues concerning UAV flight alongside other manned aircraft are taken care of and no longer a problem. I think the topic of UAVs is very interesting and I am excited to see how they are implemented in our industry in the future. I think that there is a lot of potential for the use of these aircraft, but it may come at the cost of replacing human jobs with computers.

Thank you for reading,
Kyle Wagenknecht

References

DeGarmo, M. T. (2004). Issues concerning integration of unmanned aerial vehicles in civil airspace. Retrieved February 02, 2013, from http://www.mitre.org/work/tech_papers/tech_papers_04/04_12 32/04_1232.pdf

Elias, B. (2012). Pilotless drones: Background and considerations for Congress regarding unmanned aircraft operations in the National Airspace System. Retrieved February 02, 2013, from http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/R42718.pdf

NASA. (2011). Unmanned aircraft systems integration in the National Airspace System. Retrieved February 02, 2013, from http://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/news/FactSheets/FS-075-DFRC.html

Weibel, R. E. (2005). Safety considerations for operation of different classes of unmanned aerial vehicles in the National Airspace System. Retrieved February 02, 2013, from http://dspace.mi t.edu/bitstream/handle/1721.1/30364/61751476.pdf?sequence=1