[NERsafety] Registration and Marking Requirements for Small Unmanned Aircraft

[Paulo Costa]

Greetings all,

The approaching holiday season is expected to bring thousands of new small
unmanned aircraft (UAS) into the National Airspace System. UAS operators
are considered "aviators" under the new DOT rules, and hold privileges, and
most of all, responsibilities to foster a safe flying environment to
everyone. New UAS operators may be as young as 13 years old.

I have attached the new UAS rules, published today, for broad distribution
among our community and for an important role of knowledgeable "educators"
that we should have as part of the Auxiliary of the US Air Force.

This note is not an "operational" guidance by any means, hence my main
concerns are the responsibility and safety of UAS operations. Aerospace
Education Directors and Project Leaders should seek guidance from higher
levels in our Organization for directives on how to comply with the new
rules when exercising their AE activities.

The Press Release made public today is found below:

"<quote>...
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) today announced a streamlined and user-friendly
web-based aircraft registration process for owners of small unmanned
aircraft (UAS) weighing more than 0.55 pounds (250 grams) and less than 55
pounds (approx. 25 kilograms) including payloads such as on-board cameras.

The Registration Task Force delivered recommendations to FAA Administrator
Michael Huerta and Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx on November 21.
The rule incorporates many of the task force recommendations.

“Make no mistake: unmanned aircraft enthusiast are aviators, and with that
title comes a great deal of responsibility,” said U.S. Transportation
Secretary Anthony Foxx. “Registration gives us an opportunity to work with
these users to operate their unmanned aircraft safely. I’m excited to
welcome these new aviators into the culture of safety and responsibility
that defines American innovation.”

Registration is a statutory requirement that applies to all aircraft.
Under this rule, any owner of a small UAS who has previously operated an
unmanned aircraft exclusively as a model aircraft prior to December 21,
2015, must register no later than February 19, 2016. Owners of any other
UAS purchased for use as a model aircraft after December 21, 2015 must
register before the first flight outdoors. Owners may use either the
paper-based process or the new streamlined, web-based system.  Owners using
the new streamlined web-based system must be at least 13 years old to
register.

Owners may register through a web-based system at:
www.faa.gov/uas/registration

Registrants will need to provide their name, home address and e-mail
address. Upon completion of the registration process, the web application
will generate a Certificate of Aircraft Registration/Proof of Ownership
that will include a unique identification number for the UAS owner, which
must be marked on the aircraft.

Owners using the model aircraft for hobby or recreation will only have to
register once and may use the same identification number for all of their
model UAS. The registration is valid for three years.

The normal registration fee is $5, but in an effort to encourage as many
people as possible to register quickly, the FAA is waiving this fee for the
first 30 days (from Dec. 21, 2015 to Jan 20, 2016).

“We expect hundreds of thousands of model unmanned aircraft will be
purchased this holiday season,” said FAA Administrator Huerta.
“Registration gives us the opportunity to educate these new airspace users
before they fly so they know the airspace rules and understand they are
accountable to the public for flying responsibly.”

The online registration system does not yet support registration of small
UAS used for any purpose other than hobby or recreation – for example,
using an unmanned aircraft in connection with a business. The FAA is
developing enhancements that will allow such online registrations by spring
of 2016.

The full rule can be viewed here:
www.faa.gov/news/updates/media/20151213_IFR.pdf
<unquote>..."

A copy of the rule is also attached to this email.

On the Safety side, aircrew members should be more vigilant than ever
during low-altitude operational phases of our missions. Encounters with UAS
will likely be more common during taxi, landings and takeoffs, climbing and
approaching airports and in the grid, when operating at low altitudes. High
profile searches known to the public may have a tendency to attract the new
camera-equipped UAS to locations of higher probability of detection and
should be part of our future safety briefings and/or considerations.

Commanders, please instruct your Safety Officers to include this topic in
upcoming Educational Safety Briefings.

Semper Vigilant,
Regards,


[image: cid:9A18312A-A445-4805-8F77-524A881DDED9]

Maj Paulo Costa, CAP
Northeast Region Deputy Director of Safety
508.397.9711 (c)
U.S. Air Force Auxiliary
gocivilairpatrol.com <http://www.gocivilairpatrol.com/>

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