GPS World

Tag: no-fly zone

  • FAA partners with Kittyhawk to improve drone app B4UFLY

    New app will improve the safety and reliability of drone flights across the United States.

    The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has partnered with Kittyhawk to redevelop B4UFLY to further its safety mission and create a new and improved mobile application to help recreational drone operators learn where they can and can’t fly.

    The project is being done at no cost to the FAA.

    Photo: FAA
    Photo: FAA

    The B4UFLY app will continue to be available to the public until the new app is deployed. The data will continue to be updated, but no new features will be added.

    “We want to provide drone pilots with the best tools possible so they fly safely and responsibly,” said Acting FAA Administrator Dan Elwell. “As drone sales increase and our nation’s airspace becomes busier and more complex, it’s vital that we work smarter and partner with the private sector to develop innovative products that advance safety.”

    The FAA and Kittyhawk’s Feb. 13  agreement will provide the public with a simple, easy-to-understand mobile application that provides situational awareness for recreational drone pilots. The FAA and Kittyhawk plan to launch the new app later this year.

    Kittyhawk is an enterprise drone operations software company and has been an FAA Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability (LAANC) UAS service supplier since October 2018.

  • UAV Interference with Aircraft Much Higher in 2015

    UAV Interference with Aircraft Much Higher in 2015

    Cover: National Interagency Fire CenterThe Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) wants to send out a clear message that operating drones around airplanes and helicopters is dangerous and illegal. Pilot reports of unmanned aircraft have increased dramatically over the past year, from a total of 238 sightings in all of 2014, to more than 650 by Aug. 9 of this year. Unauthorized operators may be subject to stiff fines and criminal charges, including possible jail time.

    Pilots of a variety of different types of aircraft — including many large, commercial air carriers — reported spotting 16 unmanned aircraft in June 2014, and 36 the following month. This year, 138 pilots reported seeing drones at altitudes of up to 10,000 feet during the month of June, and another 137 in July.

    Meanwhile, firefighters battling wildfire blazes in the western part of the country have been forced to ground their operations on several occasions for safety reasons when they spotted one or more unmanned aircraft in their immediate vicinity.

    The FAA says it will continue to work closely with industry partners through the “Know Before You Fly” campaign to educate unmanned aircraft users about where they can operate within the rules. The agency is also supporting the National Interagency Fire Center’s “If You Fly, We Can’t” efforts to help reduce interference with firefighting operations.

    However, the FAA also is working closely with the law enforcement community to identify and investigate unauthorized unmanned aircraft operations. The FAA has levied civil penalties for a number of unauthorized flights in various parts of the country, and has dozens of open enforcement cases.

    The FAA encourages the public to report unauthorized drone operations to local law enforcement and to help discourage this dangerous, illegal activity.