The last of six drone test sites was approved by the Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday, clearing Virginia Tech’s Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership to experiment with the emerging technology.
The Richmond Times-Dispatch reported that Gov. Terry McAuliffe spoke at the launch event, noting that unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) could create over 100,000 jobs nationwide, and become an $82 billion industry. He said police want drones for search and rescue, farmers want to use them to monitor crops, and logistics companies want to use them to deliver packages.
Congress passed legislation in 2012 mandating that the FAA draft rules for commercial drones by 2015, and the sixth test site will help develop those rules on time.
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According to CBS affiliate WDBJ, Michael Huerta, the FAA administrator, said that the drone market "is a very, very important, attractive market to the whole aviation industry and so it's really all about how [does the FAA] find the way to do it right."
"Having all six national test sites up and running will give us more and better data to help expand the safe use of unmanned aircraft into our airspace," he concluded. Alaska, New York, Nevada, North Dakota and Texas are among the 6 states chosen to host test sites.
The FAA predicts that roughly 7,500 commercial drones could be buzzing around the country within five years of getting airspace clearance.
At Wednesday's event, researchers demonstrated the capabilities of a drone model called the Smart Road Flyer. In addition to that model, the
FAA announced in a press release that it has approved testing for list of others, including the eSPAARO, Aeryon Sky Ranger, MANTRA2, Sig Rascal, and two AVID EDF-8 micro UASs.
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