Commercial UAV Expo released a report with insights from industry experts on the changes to come for the commercial drone industry in 2016, including the highly anticipated FAA ruling scheduled to come midyear that will ease the requirements and process for flying drones for commercial purposes.
In addition to the FAA ruling, the report covers developments in sensor technology and redefined approaches and thinking around drone safety. Industry experts share insights regarding what they have on their radars for 2016, what they’re looking forward to seeing, and the new opportunities they envision for commercial uses of drones in the future.
Below are six major predictions for the commercial drone industry:
1.) The final ruling from the FAA will not be completely final.
"When the FAA released the small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) document, many experts were quick to both praise and criticize the agency, sometimes in the very same instance. Many commended the elimination of the requirement for operators to have a private/commercial pilot’s license, but others just as quickly pointed out that the new rules will not enable beyond visual line-of-sight (BLOS) operation, which could greatly restrict development."
2.) Drone services will take center stage.
"You didn't have to look too long or hard to find headlines that proclaimed 2015 to be "the year of the drone." With the way drones became an obsession for many recreational flyers, it’s easy to see why they took on such mainstream popularity. Of course, flying a drone for recreational purposes is a far different endeavor than flying one for commercial purposes, and the differences are about more than money. They’re about who’s making money with drones, and who’s spending the money on them."
3.) New sensor technology will change the paradigm.
"It's not an exaggeration to say that drones are going to be able to do new and different things this year. Granted, you can say that about practically any burgeoning industry and especially about any technology which has this many people interested and involved, but it’s the way in which newly developed sensor technology will enable new approaches and capabilities that’s potentially revolutionary."
4.) We'll begin to think about safety in a whole new way.
"Whether it's on the White House lawn or the ski slopes of Italy, you’ll find no shortage of stories that showcase what can happen when operators are careless. Granted, recreational drone users cause the majority of these incidents, which just supports the assertion of many experts that the FAA should have applied the harsh stipulations to those users as opposed to commercial flyers."
5.) The hype will be fulfilled and built upon.
"Whether or not 2015 was the “year of the drone” is debatable, because a quick search finds that 2013 and even 2010 were also dubbed with the same title. Admittedly, what we’re saying when we use the term “drone” today has a different meaning than it did in 2010 and even 2013, but the point here is that this technology hasn’t come out of nowhere. People across various industries have been aware of the potential that UAVs possess, and they’ve been considering how they can and should be using said advancements for some time now."
6.) Jurisdictional headaches are going to come to the forefront.
"Many experts have taken the FAA to task for their slow and seemingly harsh approach to regulation, but that’s not just a reaction to these restrictions. While most of the critics find fault in the limitations in and of themselves, they can point to many countries that have enacted regulations that are far friendlier to commercial flyers. Certain countries already have given operators the freedom that still won’t be available when the FAA releases their final ruling."
The full report can be downloaded here.
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