The U.S. government’s coming wave of security measures for small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) has the potential to disrupt or delay regulatory changes that would expand UAS operators’ basic capabilities, several experts told the FAA UAS Symposium in March. Some called security vital to the integration of UAS aircraft in the National Airspace System (NAS). The symposium was cosponsored by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI).
FAA Acting Administrator Dan Elwell described safety and security as inseparable. “The next 12 to 18 months are critically important to UAS integration. We’re working to expand small-UAS operating parameters while making sure we appropriately consider security and privacy issues,” he said. “We need to mitigate risks to national security and public safety posed by people who aren’t playing by the rules, whether by intent or ignorance. One malicious act could put a hard st…
