I keep questioning my interest in this whole UAV thing, afraid it might be because of my personal hobby of flying them and RC planes. But no, it is much more than that. The Crisis Comm blog deals with public communication of crises and emergencies. The public, and particularly those most affected, will use any and all means to get news and information about the event. The desperation for information has been likened to a person dying of hunger or thirst. UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles a.k.a. tiny personal drones) are rapidly emerging as a very important way to get access to information, particularly visual information, that was limited before to helicopter or other aerial footage. It is extremely important for emergency communication. And perhaps even more so for operational response.
Even as UAV use in Washington got lots of positive attention, in California Calfire was ordering a drone out of the operational area, threatening to shut down all air operations due to the risk of accidents if the UAV did not leave. I don't know the facts, of course, and it would have been absolutely stupid for the operator to fly in the vicinity of low-flying craft. But there are lots of stupid people out there; more of them drive cars than UAVs.
I suspect, without having more info, that this was a bit of an overreaction. The threat of shutting down all air operations due to the risk of a collision with a small UAV seems a bit extreme — given that such air operations involved risks with other craft all the time. Certainly designating no-fly zones for UAVs and other civilian craft is necessary in an area like that. But there seems to me to be a gut reaction to many in government that since we have the authority to control things like this, and we don't know much about them, it's much better to just say "no way." That seems to be the approach the FAA is taking.
It will fail miserably. And government credibility will be the real loser.
UAVs in emergency response, public communication and emergency communications are here to stay, and their use will grow dramatically in the next months and years. Every event like the wildfires and the success of Chelan HD will add to the momentum. The FAA can say "stop" all it wants. It won't stop it. If the FAA's rationale for the draconian measures proposed do not improve, the department will turn more and more honest citizens into scofflaws, and cost lives in the meantime. UAV pilots who do stupid, dangerous things need to be caught and punished — just like vehicle drivers who do stupid and dangerous things. But to ban all drivers and cars because of the stupidity of just a few won't work.
If you're interested in evaluating UAVs and associated equipment, you can't do better than the UAV Humanitarian Network's incredibly detailed and comprehensive evaluation of current technology. Thanks Patrick Meier for allowing me to share this.
