Alert

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (Mo.), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Aviation Operations, Safety, and Security, delivered opening remarks during a hearing regarding the safe integration of drones into the airspace. Blunt discussed the pace at which drone technology has evolved, and underscored the need for a regulatory environment that supports continued growth in the industry, while putting public safety first.

“The 2017 World Civil Unmanned Aerial Systems Market Profile & Forecast says the value of drone activity rose from $40 million in 2012 to about $1 billion in 2017, and that by 2026, the estimate is that both corporate and consumer applications of commercial drones will have an annual impact of $31 billion to $46 billion in our country. …

“Anticipating the needs for a skilled workforce related to drones and drone technology, a few schools, like Southeast Missouri State University, have a Bachelor’s degree in science, in unmanned air systems… A new drone program at schools across the country and the growth of that is an indication of how rapidly this technology is becoming a part of our life and part of our economy. …

“While the industry, and the technology and innovation related to it, is growing, it is not surprising that we are grappling with regulatory issues related to that growth. The Secretary of Transportation, Secretary Chao, at a drone conference last year said, ‘The integration of drones into our national airspace will be the biggest technological challenge to aviation since the beginning of the Jet Age,’ she went on to say ‘Our job is to prepare the way for new technology, so it can be developed safely and usher in a new era aviation service, accessibility and ingenuity.’ For this reason, the members of this subcommittee are here to listen, to learn, to ask questions, and to try figure out how Congress can help the FAA safely advance in a way that manned aircraft has been dealt with over the years.”

Blunt’s full statement and video from the hearing are available here.