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Final Blog - The History of Drones

            The beginning of the use of drones was around the first world war. The first drones were catapult launched or remote operated and starting in 1935, the British used them for target practice (IWM Staff, 2018). During World War I, a secret US program run in Long Island, New York had looked at the use of aircraft drones as kamikaze drones, with TNT strapped to them and set to explode upon impact. “The planes were ‘automatically guided with a high degree of precision’ and after a predetermined distance were supposed to suddenly turn and fly vertically downward, carrying enough TNT to ‘blow a small town inside out’” (Sifton, 2012). This aircraft was called the ‘Kettering Bug’ and used gyroscopic controls (Vyas, 2018). Unfortunately, the Kettering Bug wasn’t tested until the war ended in 1918 and at that point, there would be no continued development because there was no longer a war to use it for. Starting in World War II, “the Navy launched a new program, called Operatio
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ATC Privatization

1.       The current ATC system utilizes a system of radar and transponders for position reporting and other various parameters. The new Nextgen system will allow for exact position reporting via the ADS-B system and other components. ATC will have an exact GPS reported location of an aircraft, along with other information surrounding the aircraft, such as weather conditions and other aircraft. Because aircraft positions are no longer dependent upon radar, ATC will have a reduction in or removal of dead zones, particularly near mountains, Due to the nature of this new system being GPS based, the National Airspace System (NAS) can be improved with more optimal routes, resulting in a reduction of “flying time, fuel use, and aircraft exhaust emissions while getting passengers to their destinations at more predictable times. NextGen significantly improves overall capacity, performance, efficiency, and predictability throughout the NAS” (How NextGen Works, 2017). 2.       GA has trad
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Aviation Organizations

1.   The two organizations I chose include the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the National Aeronautic Association (NAA). The IATA has been around since 1945 and was founded in Havana, Cuba. The NAA has been around since 1905, and according to their website, they were founded prior to the Wright Brothers even going public with their aircraft invention. 2.   The IATA’s vision is “to be the force for value creation and innovation driving a safe, secure and profitable air transport industry that sustainably connects and enriches our world”, with a mission to “represent, lead, and serve the airline industry” (Vision and Mission, 2010). In representing the airline industry, the IATA increases awareness of the benefits of aviation as it relates to air transport for the world economy. They fight for reasonable rules and regulation and will stand up to regulators creating unfair law. In leading the airline industry, the IATA has created standards over the course of 7
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Global Airlines: Is it a Fair playing Field

1.       The US-UAE Open Skies Agreement is not unique in its creation. The United States has many Open Skies Agreements with a multitude of countries. According to the U.S. Department of State (Open Skies, 2017), these agreements: provide rights for airlines to offer international passenger and cargo services. They are pro-consumer, pro-competition, and pro-growth. They include reciprocal obligations to eliminate government interference in commercial airline decisions about routes, capacity, and pricing, so airlines can provide more affordable, convenient, and efficient air service to consumers, promoting increased travel and trade, and facilitating broad economic growth. Open Skies agreements improve flexibility for airline operations, expand cooperative marketing opportunities between airlines, enable global express delivery cargo networks, liberalize charter regulations, and commit both governments to high standards of safety and security. Generally speaking, the agreem
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Who Should be the Next FAA Administrator?

1.       John Dunkin’s qualifications according to L (2018), include: [managing] airline and corporate flight departments, [certifying] airlines from start-up under FAA regulations, and [overseeing] the Trump presidential campaign’s air fleet, which included managing all aviation transportation for travel to 203 cities in 43 states over the course of 21 months. In addition, he is actually a pilot, unlike many FAA administrators, such as the prior administrator Michael Huerta, and he had started flying before he received his driver’s license (Snyder et al., 2018). It has been said by officials of the Trump administration that if chosen, it would not be because of Dunkin’s ties to President Trump (even though that certainly helps!), but rather his skillset and qualifications. 2.       “Among the other candidates are the current acting head of FAA, Daniel Elwell, a former Air Force pilot who served at the agency from 2006-2008” (Levin, Natter, Beene, 2018). Elwell had worke
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The Commercial Space Industry

1.      The idea of space tourism really began in the 1960’s. “During the 1960s, space tourism was viewed of as an industry that would one day balloon. Defunct U.S. airliner Pan-Am maintained a waiting list for eventual trips to the moon, while futurists forecasted that lunar colonies would be established by the year 2000”  (Blum, 2015).  Space tourism has developed slowly. There have only been 551 people who’ve been into space, with only seven of them private citizens. The first major accomplishment was in 1984, when a non-government employee ventured into space as a payload specialist for McDonnell Douglas. The next major accomplishment regarding space tourism was in 1998, when Space Adventures was founded. Space Adventures has been the only company to ever send private citizens into space at a cost of between $20 million and $40 million for a 10-day adventure and trip to the international space station. The first major hurdle came in 1986, when the Challenger ship disintegrated
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The Current Status of UAVs

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UAVs are currently being used by civilians for purposes of recreation, business, photography, crop monitoring, . I have actually done research on this topic recently due to my recent acquisition of a high-end drone so I'm well aware of the requirements. These UAVs are currently regulated under two categories. There's Part 107 under the FAA, and there's the more recent announcement from congress with the Special Rule for Model Aircraft (Public Law 112-95 Section 336). The civilian UAV's are mostly regulated under the Special Rule for Model Aircraft, assuming the activities only include recreation. The UAVs used for recreation have had a conflicting past regarding registration with the FAA. According to the FAA Modernization and Reform Act (2012), it states that the FAA "may not promulgate any rule or regulation regarding a model aircraft". This means that the FAA cannot require recreational drone users to have to register their aircraft. However, the FAA in 2
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