The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced Friday that it had released two new final rules for the use of unmanned aircraft – or drones.
The new rules will require Remote Identification of drones and allow operators of small drones to fly over people and at night, under certain conditions.
“These final rules carefully address safety, security, and privacy concerns while advancing opportunities for innovation and utilization of drone technology,” said U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine L. Chao.
Remote ID is a step toward integrating drones into the national airspace system, the USDOT said. Remote ID provides identification of drones in flight, as well as the location of their control stations. The identification measure would provide information to national security agencies and law enforcement, and other officials charged with ensuring public safety.
The Operations Over People and at Night rule applies to Part 107 operators and provides them with the ability to fly over people and moving vehicles depending on the level of risk a small drone operation present to people on the ground. The rule requires that small drone operators have their remote pilot certificate and identification in their possession when operating and ready to present them to authorities if needed.
The final rule prohibits drone flights over open-air human assemblies and requires that if the drone flies over a closed- or restricted-access site, all human beings within that site must be given notice that a drone may be flying over them.
The FAA estimates that there are currently over 1.7 million drone registrations in the United States and 203,000 FAA-certificated remote pilots, making drones one of the fastest growing segments in the transportation sector.
Both rules will become effective 60 days after publication in the Federal Register, and drone manufacturers will have 18 months to begin producing drones with Remote ID. Operators will have 30 months to start using drones with Remote ID.