Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Won't Go Away

Air Safety Week, Nov 5, 2007

The National Transportation Safety Board's historic ruling on the probable cause of the April 2006 Predator B unmanned aircraft crash in Arizona represents just the first of a series of unmanned systems accident investigations that will follow as drones of all sizes finally win approval by federal air safety regulators to operate unfettered in the National Airspace System (NAS).

The Safety Board ruled that the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) accident was chiefly caused by the ground-based pilot's failure to use checklist procedures to safely operate the aircraft. The NTSB issued 22 safety recommendations to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Federal Aviation Administration covering "a wide range of safety issues involving the civilian use of unmanned aircraft," said Safety Board Chairman Mark V. Rosenker.

He said the contractor's performance in providing airborne border patrol surveillance for the federal agency was not without issue. "This was not as tight (an operation) as it should have been. CBP bought what it believed was a solid operation, but mistakes were being made."

At issue is whether unmanned aerial systems (UAS) will ever provide "an equivalent level of safety" to manned aircraft operating in the NAS.

"This investigation has raised questions about the different standards for manned and unmanned aircraft and the safety implications of this discrepancy," said Rosenker. "Why, for example, were numerous unresolved lock- ups of the pilot's control console even possible while such conditions would never be tolerated in the cockpit of a manned aircraft?"

Expressing concerns about how manned and unmanned aircraft will share the same airspace, Chairman Rosenker said, "The fact that we approved 22 safety recommendations based on our investigation of a single accident is an indication of the scope of the safety issues these unmanned aircraft are bringing into the NAS."

The Safety Board's investigation revealed that the pilot was not proficient in the performance of emergency procedures, which led to the accident. "The pilot is still the pilot, whether he is at a remote console or on the flight deck."

But Rosenker is bullish about the future of UAVs in the civil world. "UAVs will be extremely important for the future of aviation. I see them being used effectively in the civil environment, and eventually in the commercial environment. These are exciting times, but we need a well thought out plan for UAV operations and safety if they will be as successful as I believe they can be."

"This accident investigation will go a long way to making unmanned aircraft operations in the NAS a much safer and efficient way of doing business. In an interview after the NTSB hearing, Rosenker told Air Safety Week that "we want to address UAV operations in the NAS early, before we have a lot of these devices flying in airspace, possibly creating a very serious potential for accidents."

He said achieving "an equivalent level of safety" for drone operations in the NAS is not just a goal, but a given. "We shouldn't settle for anything less. A UAV can't be a rogue, exempt from appropriate rules and regulations that keep our airspace safe and thus avoids chaos."

The CBP may again deal with the NTSB in that the law enforcement agency will acquire at least six Predator B UAS to patrol both the northern and southern borders of the U.S.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the U.S. Forest Service have been early proponents of regular UAS operations in the NAS, having successfully demonstrated how UAS can counter major wildfires fueled by extreme heat and drought.

This past summer, they conducted flights of a Predator B remotely piloted vehicle equipped with advanced imaging and communications equipment to capture real-time thermal infrared images of western states wildfires, which were passed along to firefighters on the ground.

The Ikhana, a Predator B modified for civil science and research missions, flew again in October, assisting firefighters battling the Southern California wildfires.

"In the not-too-distant future, we'll look back at unmanned aircraft demonstrations and realize that these flights paved the way for civilian use of unmanned aircraft that benefit all of us, said NASA's Brent Cobleigh.

The FAA has already cleared Predators for domestic disaster relief operations, giving the U.S. Air Force permission in 2006 to conduct humanitarian missions in civil airspace as required and within specific flight restrictions. The USAF used a Global Hawk UAS to collect high-altitude imagery of the Southern California wildfires, representing the first domestic use of the military surveillance platform.

Meanwhile, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is sending small drones with advanced weather-watching equipment deep into hurricanes.

At least three local police departments have purchased or have budgeted money to buy small drones to help them respond to emergencies and for traffic and crowd control. But the FAA has stepped in, keeping the police UAS grounded pending establishment of operating regulations for unfettered flights.