AMA Is The First Organization To Be Officially Recognized As A CBO

After first establishing the creation of CBO's to offer some structure and guidance to the recretational drone community, the FAA has officially recognized the Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA) as a Community-Based Organization (CBO) as of November 15, 2022.

CBO recognition is important for many reasons. This validates and gives credibility to our safety program among stakeholders and regulators. Although AMA has been shaping regulations for decades, legislation gives CBOs a more formal seat at the table when the FAA considers recreational regulations. This designation opens the door to additional advocacy efforts to include applying for FAA-Recognized Identification Area (FRIA) status and higher altitudes for our clubs’ flying sites.

The application process for CBO recognition was published in Advisory Circular (AC) 91-57C, which the FAA released on October 25, 2022. AMA was the first organization to apply and the first to be officially recognized as a CBO.

The FAA also published AC 89-3 on October 25, 2022, which outlined the application process for FRIAs. As a reminder, AMA must apply on behalf of their clubs wishing to designate their flying site as a FRIA. AMA’s Clubs Department will be reaching out soon via email to club officers regarding FRIAs and the FRIA application process.

FMI: www.modelaircraft.org/safety, www.faa.gov/uas/recreational_flyers