Using UAV Rules To Craft Policies Related To Model Aircraft

The FAA's interpretation of the proposed rules for integration of UAVs in the National Air Space (NAS) is being used as a foundation for policies related to model aircraft ... to the detriment of the hobby, according to Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA) executive director Dave Mathewson.

In an opinion piece published by USA Today, Mathewson says that under the FAA's interpretive rule, model aircraft are defined as "aircraft", which gives the FAA the authority to regulate their use. The end result is that a small, electric-powered model airplane is subject to the the same federal regulations that apply to an Airbus A380.

That, Mathewson said, is "simply absurd."

He goes on to say that the agency's narrow interpretation of the phrase "hobby or recreational use" could have a severe negative impact on the industry that supports model aviation, many of them small businesses.

Mathewson points out that more than 33,000 comments were submitted for the  "Special Rule for Model Aircraft," more than seven times the number that were received for the more-widely-publicized small UAS rule.

While Mathewson says that Congress certainly did not intend to give model aviation a "free pass," he does note that the AMA, with more than 176,000 members of all age ranges and income levels, have a stellar safety record as a result of well-established educational and training programs.

FMI: www.faa.gov/uas/media/Sec_331_336_UAS.pdf  Full Op-Ed