Drone sites may trigger windfall

The drone industry is hoping for a windfall after the Federal Aviation Administration announced six U.S. test sites for unmanned aircraft on Monday.

The site selection is an important step toward tapping into the economic and job creation potential of drones over U.S. soil, said the leader of the unmanned systems industry’s top trade group.


“Today’s announcement by the FAA is an important milestone on the path toward unlocking the potential of unmanned aircraft,” said Michael Toscano, CEO of the Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International, which represents more than 7,000 member companies in 60 countries.

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“From advancing scientific research and responding to natural disasters to locating missing persons and helping to fight wildfires, [unmanned aerial systems] can save time, save money and, most importantly, save lives,” Toscano said. “Our hope is this will lead to the creation of more sites and eventually to full integration of UAS into our skies, which will help create lasting jobs and boost the U.S. economy.”

Vendors prefer the term “unmanned system” to “drone,” which tends to conjure up images of deadly strikes in places like Pakistan and Yemen. And the unmanned systems industry has long been pushing for integration of drones into U.S. skies for nonmilitary purposes.

First, though, they must be made safe to share the skies. To help get there, the FAA announced the selection of six test-site bids, from the University of Alaska, the state of Nevada, New York’s Griffiss International Airport, the North Dakota Department of Commerce, Texas A&M University in Corpus Christi and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

Twenty-four states competed in the bid process for the opportunity to bring home drone tests — and jobs.

At AUVSI’s annual meeting in Washington in August, representatives of several states’ bids said that even if they were not chosen to be among the first six test sites, they anticipate the drone market in the U.S. to grow substantially in the near future.

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Drone advocates also predict that the eventual economic impact of widespread drone use in the U.S. could be significant.

“AUVSI’s economic report projects that the expansion of UAS technology will create more than 100,000 jobs nationwide and generate more than $82 billion in economic impact in the first decade following integration,” Toscano said.

FAA Administrator Michael Huerta cautioned Monday that the drone integration process would be phased in, more like waves than an explosion. The drone test sites announced Monday are scheduled to be operational within 180 days and conduct research at least through 2017.

“As we are conducting this research, I think the best way to think about it is it would be a staged integration,” Huerta told reporters, adding later: “As the research is going on, I think you will see that there will be particular activities that will be authorized as we move out in the operation of these test sites.”

But the move is a sign of possible upcoming changes in the U.S. approach to commercial drone use, which is currently highly restricted by the FAA.

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The test sites are charged with demonstrating safe integration of drones by September 2015, and the FAA is expected to issue a proposed rule on small-drone usage in early 2014.

The test sites will also help officials explore privacy issues, how the FAA should regulate commercial airspace and the potential future uses of unmanned aircraft. The test site operators will have to comply with federal, state and other laws protecting an individual’s right to privacy and conduct annual reviews of privacy practices allowing for public comment, the FAA said.

For companies such as General Atomics, having domestic test sites in operation is good news.

California-based GA is now testing several sensor systems necessary for safe domestic drone use aboard its Predator B-model aircraft. Its sense-and-avoid technology could pave the way for “due regard” capability — which allows unmanned systems to autonomously detect and avoid other aircraft so that they can fly safely in U.S. airspace, the company said this month.

If the FAA begins to loosen restrictions on use in U.S. skies, it could open up business opportunities for drone-makers such as GA and Northrop Grumman, which so far have mostly sold aircraft to the Defense Department for military use.

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“We are working closely with the FAA, NASA, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and our industry alliances to advance the safe and efficient integration of unmanned aircraft systems into domestic and international airspace,” said Frank Pace, president of GA’s aircraft systems group. “Our sense-and-avoid capability is a key part of that goal, and we continue to make ongoing progress towards this end.”

North Dakota officials hailed their state’s selection Monday after working for years to position the city of Grand Forks as a premier northern unmanned systems hub. The state has invested more than $14 million to establish a national test and research site.

“We’ve said all along that Grand Forks is an ideal location to test UAS integration, and now the FAA has agreed with us,” Republican Sen. John Hoeven said in a statement. “As a test site, Grand Forks will be integral in developing the future commercial use of UAS for our nation and the world.”

Grand Forks County is already working with the U.S. Air Force to develop Grand Sky, an unmanned systems technology and business park that will be built on more than 200 acres at Grand Forks Air Force Base. Northrop Grumman, which builds the RQ-4 Global Hawk drone, has committed to become the park’s first tenant, the North Dakota lawmaker said.

“We envisioned collaborations here in practical and original ways to create a dynamic environment for the military, industry and education,” Hoeven said. “Now all of those elements are coming together in a coordinated way to spur innovation, boost our economy and create jobs in the Grand Forks region.”

Kathryn A. Wolfe contributed to this report.