Had Been Featured In A News Article That Caught Agency's Attention

It would appear that somebody at the FAA reads the newspaper, or at least has a Google search set up to find stories about people using UAVs.

A realtor in Chicago who had been featured in an article in the Chicago business publication Craines that talked about his use of a quadcopter in his business recently received an email from the FAA telling him that he should not be doing that.

The email to realtor Larry Malvin was from Mark Foisy, an aviation safety inspector in the FAA's flight standards division and the unmanned aircraft specialist for the Great Lakes Region. "There is no method at this time for a business or company to fly UAS (unmanned aircraft systems) in the NAS (national airspace system),” the message said.

FAA spokeswoman Elizabeth Cory said that the letter did not threaten Malvin with any punitive action, but was intended to be "informational. “We're concerned about public safety and the careless or reckless operation” of such aircraft, Cory said.

The email cited AC91-57, which allows the use of aircraft such as Malvin's quadcotper by "modelers" or hobbyists, but “specifically excludes its use by persons or companies for business purposes.”

Some lawyers still say that the FAA has no jurisdiction of the use of UAVs in the absence of specific rules or laws. Connecticut lawyer Peter Sachs told Craines that "there is not a single statute that is currently enforceable at the federal level.”

Malvin said he would simply go along with whatever the FAA comes up with.

FMI: AC91-57