US considers approving drones for filming movies

The US Federal Aviation Administration said on Monday it is considering giving permission to seven movie and television filming companies to use unmanned aircraft for aerial photography, a potentially significant step that could lead to greater relaxation of the agencys ban on commercial use of drones.

The companies that have filed petitions to receive exemptions are Aerial MOB LLC, Astraeus Aerial, Flying-Cam Inc., HeliVideo Productions LLC, Pictorvision Inc, Vortex Aerial, and Snaproll Media LLC, the FAA said in a statement. To receive the exemptions, the companies must show their drone operations wont harm safety, and would be in the public interest.

Less expensive to operate

Currently, no commercial drone flights are permitted in U.S. with the lone exception of flights off the Alaskan coast over the Arctic Ocean by the Conoco Philips oil company. The FAA only granted permission for those flights after Congress told the agency to start permitting

flights in the Arctic region.

The FAA has been under intense pressure from Congress and industry to allow commercial drone flights to do work that in many cases is too dirty, dull, or dangerous for manned aircraft. Drones are also often less expensive to operate than manned aircraft. The agency has been working for the past decade on safety regulations to permit widespread commercial drone use, but has repeatedly delayed issuing regulations.

The FAAs current timetable calls for releasing proposed regulations for operating small drones - usually defined as weighing less than 55 pounds - by November. It would take at least months, and possibly years, after that to make the regulations final.

Manned aircraft at risk

FAA officials caution that rushing to gain the economic and other benefits of drones could put manned aircraft at risk. U.S. skies have more aircraft and more varied types of aircraft and aircraft operations than anywhere else in the world, and integrating their operations with unmanned aircraft is a complex business, they say.

Ben Gielow, general counsel for the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International, a trade association for the commercial drone industry, said hes pleased the FAA is considering the petitions. But he said if the agency is only going to grant permission on a limited, case-by-case basis, then this doesnt really open up the skies for anyone who wants to fly.

Despite FAAs ban, drones have already been used by the movie industry, including to film parts of the Martin Scorsese-directed movie The Wolf of Wall Street. A wide range of other businesses from real estate agents to beer makers to journalists have also ignored the ban.

At least two lawsuits have been filed challenging the ban.

An administrative law judge with the National Transportation Safety Board who heard one of the challenges ruled that the FAA cant enforce regulations that dont yet exist. The agency is appealing that decision.

http://www.channel24.co.za

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