From the ground of the National Public Safety UAS Conference: a panel of FAA representative provide updates and insights for public safety and law enforcement drone community. Mike O’Shea, FAA Public Safety Liaison; Kerry Fleming, Manager of SOSC; and Aviation Safety Analyst John Meehan presented a significant update to the B4UFly app, distant ID, and and fielded questions from the audience.
Update to the B4UFly App: SGI Requests
SGI stands for Special Government Interests: and its a critical mechanism that enables law enforcement agencies to work with the FAA to deliver critical services utilizing sensitive airspace. Kerry Fleming, Manager of SOSC, says their department is obtainable 24/7, 12 months a 12 months to work with law enforcement on SGIs: they usually’ve collaborated with developers of the B4UFly App to make the technique of getting an SGI waiver even easier for qualified agencies.
“We’re working on updates and enhancements to make everybody’s life easier,” said Fleming. “We’ve been working with agencies which have a DFR program, and we’ve listened to the challenges that they’ve with reference to TFRs [temporary flight restrictions], especially those related to POTUS.” Now, the department is develop a protocols to provide drone as first responder (DFR) programs permission to proceed emergency operations, reminiscent of response to 911 calls, in TFRs.
As well as, said Fleming, the subsequent iteration of the B4UFly app will provide additional functionality that may enable public safety agencies to autonatically request SGI waivers. The app will provide a alternative of LAANC or SGI for qualified agencies: for DFR operations in a TFR area, agencies must request SGI waiver.
Distant ID: Discretionary Enforcement Period Ends
John Meehan, Aviation Safety Analyst, identified that while the FAA allowed for a discretionary enforcement period on Distant ID to permit pilots time to equip their aircraft, Distant ID rules are already in place. That being said, Kerry Fleming points out that if public safety agencies are still waiting for distant ID compliant equipment, the FAA is willing to work with the agency so as to add a Distant ID waiver to an SGI waiver.
A law enforcement officer from the audience asked if law enforcement pilots is perhaps exempt from Distant ID requirements for their very own protection. John Meehan points out that while there’s a possibility, as referred to above, for agencies to receive a waiver for Distant ID requirements for certain sensitive missions, Distant ID can be a critical a part of unmanned traffic management (UTM). Robust UTM systems require participation from all parties for accurate airspace awareness and deconfliction.
Practically, Meehan points out, non-participation in Distant ID has other implications. “You can not turn distant ID on and off, it’s not like ADS-B,” he said. “The sensible reality is that it’s possible you’ll have to have a separate piece of apparatus for non-remote ID missions.”
Flight Programs and Safety
Meehan also took the chance to talk to the audience in regards to the need for airspace awareness to forestall collisions as DFR and law enforcement drone programs proceed to grow.
“Within the FAA’s mind, you might be a flight department,” he said. “Drones are a tool, like an axe – but are also an aircraft, flown by aviators within the National airspace. We’d like people to think in a different way about risk.”
Meehan points that in 100% of the cases of collisions between unmanned and manned aircraft, “Those drone pilots were screen watching – they weren’t looking up within the sky, they were taking a look at their camera.”
“There’s real risk. It takes 12 1/2 seconds for an undistracted pilot to detect and act once they see one other aircraft. But a Blackhawk goes greater than feet per second… what number of seconds of response time would you’ve if a low flying helicopter flew over that constructing, with restricted vision?
“The chance, statistically is distant – but when it happens, the damage is severe.”
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