FAA preps traffic management for drones

 

Connecting state and local government leaders

Automated drone authorizations, remote identification and dynamic airspace management are essential for integrating unmanned systems into the national airspace.

The Federal Aviation Administration expects to complete the nationwide deployment of Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability for unmanned aircraft systems by the end of this month and demonstrate a UAS traffic management (UTM) system by next year, according to testimony from the administration during a Sept. 6 hearing about integrating drones into the national airspace.

LAANC is used to automate approvals for drone flights near airports. Drone operators use an app to submit flight  information and have it checked against FAA preapproval zones and temporary flight restrictions. If approved, the system returns an authorization for flight in near real time. The system currently covers  82 percent of air traffic facilities in the country, according to the FAA.

But LAANC is just one step toward a nationwide UTM system, witnesses said during the House Transportation Aviation subcommittee hearing.

“Our plan for future UTM capabilities includes a number of components -- LAANC, remote identification  and dynamic airspace management -- that will support the needs of industry, FAA, and our security partners,” FAA Technical Center Director Shelley Yak said in her written testimony.

All five witnesses on the panel said they were in favor of requiring aircraft to have remote ID capabilities that would allow law enforcement along with other drone operators to identify unmanned systems in the airspace.

Remote identification is "a critical, foundational element for any sort of universal traffic management system,” said Mariah Scott, the president of Skyward, a drone management firm.

She described UTM as a “decentralized network, like a wireless network or the internet, for coordinating all types of aircraft efficiently, safely and scalably.” This system will require a number of different communication links: from the operator to the drone, from the drone to other drones, from the drone to the UTM,  and so on. How exactly this communication will be handled is still being studied.

To ensure stable dynamic communications  between the drone and the operator, Yak said the FAA is researching "frequency levels, the minimum operational performance requirements for that data link to ensure the integrity of that link to allow us to integrate these aircraft into the system.”

JoeBen Bevirt, the founder and CEO of Joby Aviation, an aircraft manufacturer, said the communication links need to be “redundant and diverse.” That would mean a drone could have secure connections to both satellite and cellular networks as a form of backup, he said.

UberElevate is working with NASA and the FAA “to develop and test the information exchange protocols between the FAA’s systems and the industry-based UAS service supplier systems,” said Tom Prevot, the company's director of engineering and airspace systems. “To kickstart this area of collaboration, a simulation study will be conducted at NASA Ames Research center in the Silicon Valley in just two weeks,” he said in his testimony.

Yak said the FAA plans to demonstrate its UTM capabilities sometime next year.

“I think the UAS traffic management arena is blossoming well,” she said. “We have a demo coming up in the 2019 timeframe.” The FAA will be work with NASA and industry to fly drones through test sites and simulate drone flights through the NextGen Integration and Evaluation Capability Laboratory, she said.

“The technical and regulatory project of integrating the airspace is enormous,” Scott said. “Small steps are already having a tremendous impact -- but now we need to make bigger strides.”

NEXT STORY: Using lasers to keep drones aloft

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.