Category Archives: Aviation Law
FAA allows Amazon to fly drones experimentally
By Bart Jansen, USA TODAY WASHINGTON – The Federal Aviation Administration approved Amazon Logistics Inc. on Thursday to fly drones experimentally. The approval will allow the company to conduct research, development and crew training for deliveries called Amazon Prime Air. The company is required to fly remote-controlled aircraft lower than 400 feet during daylight hours,… Read More »
Secret Service Testing Drones, How to Disrupt Their Flying
The Associated Press Mysterious, middle of the night drone flights by the U.S. Secret Service during the next several weeks over parts of Washington — usually off-limits as a strict no-fly zone — are part of secret government testing intended to find ways to interfere with rogue drones or knock them out of the sky The Associated Press… Read More »
Medical reform legislation introduced in House, Senate
By Elizabeth A. Tennyson, AOPA A group of powerful senators and representatives has introduced new legislation in both houses of Congress that would allow thousands of pilots to fly without going through the costly and time-consuming third class medical process and would offer new protections for general aviation pilots. Under the Pilot’s Bill of Rights 2, pilots flying recreationally… Read More »
FAA unveils drone rules; Obama orders policy for agencies
By Bart Jansen, USA TODAY The Federal Aviation Administration released Sunday its long-awaited proposal for governing small commercial drones, setting a plan for remote-controlled aircraft to share the skies with passenger planes. The FAA proposal would allow drones weighing up to 55 pounds to fly within sight of their remote pilots during daylight hours. The… Read More »
FAA approves eight drone requests
By Alton K. March, AOPA Eight more requests to operate drones (sorry, unmanned aircraft systems) have been granted by the FAA, although UAS must be operated by a pilot with a minimum of a private pilot certificate and current medical plus a second person, an observer who can sound the alarm about errant UAS. The… Read More »
Dashcam captures moment TransAsia plane hits bridge, crashes in Taipei
By Euan McKirdy and Vivian Kam, CNN Dramatic dashboard video shows the moment an out-of-control plane clips an aerial highway before crashing into a river in Taiwan. Thirteen people are confirmed dead and dozens remain missing after the TransAsia Airways ATR-72, carrying 58 people, veered out of control en route from Taipei to Kinmen, off… Read More »
Obama: U.S. Needs Rules for Commercial Drones
By JACK NICAS, The Wall Street Journal A day after a consumer drone landed on the White House grounds, President Barak Obama said the U.S. needs regulations to ensure unmanned aircraft “aren’t dangerous and that they’re not violating people’s privacy.” Mr. Obama said that while nonmilitary drones have a range of “incredibly useful functions,” from farming to… Read More »
New sleep apnea policy to take effect
By Elizabeth A. Tennyson, AOPA A new FAA policy on obstructive sleep apnea that addresses many of the concerns raised by AOPA is scheduled to take effect March 2. The new policy closely follows draft guidelines released in April 2014 and will not disqualify pilots from receiving a medical certificate based solely on body mass index… Read More »
Government Employee Crashes Small Drone at White House
WASHINGTON — The small drone that crashed into a tree on the South Lawn of the White House early Monday morning was operated by a government employee who has told the Secret Service that he did not mean to fly it over the White House fence or near the president’s residence, according to law enforcement officials. The… Read More »
AirAsia Flight QZ8501 with 162 on board goes missing on way to Singapore
By Jethro Mullen and Susanna Capelouto, CNN An AirAsia passenger jet carrying 162 people lost contact with Indonesian air traffic control early Sunday, gripping Southeast Asia with a second missing plane crisis in less than a year. The search operation for the missing AirAsia Flight QZ8501 has been halted for the night, but big ships… Read More »