Reports of possible sightings of drones — also known as unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) — in the United States numbered 1,274 in February through September of 2016, nearly 50 percent higher than the number of reports filed for the same period in 2015, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said.
The data include several reports from pilots who claim that drones struck their aircraft. Nevertheless, the FAA said that it has “to date … not verified any collision between a civil aircraft and a civil drone. Every investigation has found the reported collisions were either birds, impact with other items such as wires and posts, or structural failure not related to colliding with an unmanned aircraft.”
The FAA reiterated that the safe integration of drones into the National Airspace System is a top priority, “and the agency wants to send a clear message that operating drones around ai…
