FAA Slows Pace of UAV Integration

Stephen Pope

Wednesday, November 21, 2012 at 07:45 PM ET

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Key Takeaways:

The FAA has indefinitely suspended the selection of six U.S. test sites for unmanned aircraft (UAVs), citing safety and privacy concerns.
This delay hinders the integration of UAVs into civil airspace and has drawn criticism from some members of Congress, who question the FAA's focus on privacy and note previous delays.
Despite the suspension, the FAA is legislatively mandated to establish rules for integrating small UAVs into national airspace by 2015, stating it will proceed prudently to ensure safety, address privacy, and promote economic growth.

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Citing safety concerns and privacy issues, the FAA has delayed the selection of U.S. sites for the testing of unmanned aircraft, effectively putting the brakes on a push to integrate UAVs into civil airspace.

In a letter to Republican Congressman Howard McKeon of California, chairman of the House Unmanned Systems Caucus, FAA Administrator Michael Huerta said the establishment of six test sites for UAV for experimentation has been suspended indefinitely.