Four days before the new year, after 53,000 public comments on the draft rule, and almost one year after the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) launch, the waiting is over.

The Federal Aviation Administration has released its final Remote Identification (RID) Rule.

What is Remote ID:

The rule creates a new Part 89 in Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Remote Identification of Unmanned Aircraft. It essentially requires a “digital license plate” for unmanned aircraft (UA) to be operated in the U.S., one that both people on the ground and other airspace users can receive

This rule is specifically for UA (the unmanned air vehicle itself) and not unmanned aircraft systems (UAS – which includes the control station and data link).

This recognizes that manufacturers might make UA’s that are controlled by another manufacturer’s control stations.

More importantly, it ensures that the UA will be broadcasting RID and not the control station. Very important if the UA goes lost link.

Timelines:

The Rule is effective 60 days from the expected publication date in the Federal Register in January 2021.

Operators have thirty months and manufacturers have 18 months after this date to comply (i.e., 60 days plus 30 months).

RID Is Needed For:

UAs weighing 55 pounds or less that must be registered under part 47 or part 48

RID Is Not Needed For:

• Homebuilt unmanned aircraft: defined as a UA that an individual built solely for education or recreation. Homebuilt UA can only fly in an FAA-recognized identification area (FRIA).

• UA of the United States government armed forces.

• UA that weigh 0.55 pounds or less on takeoff

• Research UA: UA designed for the purpose of aeronautical research or test UA designed to show compliance with regulations.

• Indoor UA Operations. The RID requirements only apply when the UA exits the interior of a building or structure and is operated outside, so indoor ops are not subject to RID.

Types of RID

The big news is this rule contains broadcast-only requirements. Network-based/internet transmission requirements and the use of third-party UAS Service Suppliers (USS) were eliminated “at this time.”

UAs will broadcast the RID message elements listed below directly from the UA via radio frequency broadcast. The public can use personal wireless devices within range to receive RID.

Correlating the serial number or session IDs with the registration database is limited to the FAA only, but can be made available to authorized law enforcement and national security personnel upon request.

Compliance

The Rule impacts not just operators, but also designers and manufacturers. It contains both design and production requirements. The FAA is using performance-based requirements. Manufacturers must show that their standard RID UA or broadcast module meets the performance requirements of an FAA-accepted means of compliance. Industry consensus standards will be one means, but they have not been accepted by the FAA yet.

The Women And Drones Network brings together women from around the world to help them connect and succeed in the drone industry.

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Women to Watch in the Drone Industry, the 2020 Awards: https://womenanddrones.com/2020-women-to-watch-global-awards/

This week on the InterDrone Podcast we sat down with Eszter Kovacs, the Acting Secretary General of Global UTM Association (GUTMA) and CEO and Founder of Manageld Ltd & DroneTalks. Eszter is also a steering committee member of the GUTMA & GSMA Aerial Connectivity Joint Activity initiative and advisor of multiple drone initiatives, start-ups and conferences. She holds a degree in Military & Safety Engineering from the Hungarian National University of Public Services and she is currently attending Boston University’s digital leadership studies.

We spoke about GUTMA's latest white paper, her thoughts on drone education, what the future of UTM will look like, and much more.

Subscribe:

For more InterDrone content: https://interdrone.com/newsletters/

Attend:

Meet Eszter at InterDrone Online, December 15-17: https://interdrone.com/interdrone-online/

This week on the InterDrone Podcast we sat down with Tony Basile, Vice President for Operations for the NUIAR Alliance. NUAIR manages operations of the New York UAS Test Site at Griffiss International Airport in Rome, NY, one of seven FAA-designated UAS test sites in the United States.

NUAIR is responsible for the continued development and advancement of New York’s 50-mile UAS corridor between Syracuse and Rome, facilitating beyond visual line of sight testing, commercial operations, and the safe integration of UAS into the national airspace.

This week on the InterDrone Podcast we sat down with Richard Lopez, VDC Manager at Hensel Phelps. We spoke about drones being used on construction sites, potential impacts of a foreign drone manufacturer ban in the US, drones performing inspections on indoor infrastructure, starting a drone program, and much more.

Learn more: https://interdrone.com/

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This week on the InterDrone Podcast we sat down with Brendan Groves, Head of Regulatory and Policy Affairs at Skydio.

Meet Brendan at InterDrone Online: https://interdrone.com/interdrone-online/

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Articles:

1. NCDOT Granted Waiver for BVLOS Bridge Inspections - https://insideunmannedsystems.com/ncdot-granted-waiver-for-bvlos-bridge-inspections/

2. What People Think About Drones: New Study Shows Public Doesn’t Know About Drones in First Response - https://dronelife.com/2020/11/07/what-people-think-about-drones/

This week on the InterDrone Podcast we sat down with Jennifer Andrews of Bell Flight. Jennifer serves as the NASA SIO (system integration and operationalization) project lead on Bell’s Technology and Innovation team.

Meet Jennifer at InterDrone Online: https://interdrone.com/

Subscribe for free weekly drone content: https://interdrone.com/newsletters/

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We spoke about the end of the IPP (Integration Pilot Program) and what the FAA has planned next, North Dakota's new BVLOS network, dubbed 'Vantis', a new bird-inspired drone with moving wings which has proved to provide unprecedented agility, and finally about Jennifer's work at Bell and her project with NASA.

Articles:

1. U.S. DOT Announces BEYOND Program Will Continue Where UAS IPP Ends - https://dronelife.com/2020/10/30/beyond-program-will-continue-where-uas-ipp-ends/

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine L. Chao has announced that the three-year Integration Pilot Program (IPP) has ended as of Oct. 25.

Now, the program will move to a next phase, named Beyond.

A DOT announcement said that “The nine state, local and tribal governments that participated in the program have signed new agreements with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to continue to tackle remaining UAS integration challenges,” say a U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announcement.

2. North Dakota Announces Vantis as Statewide UAS BVLOS Network - https://www.suasnews.com/2020/10/north-dakota-announces-vantis-as-statewide-uas-bvlos-network/

Vantis will be overseen by the Northern Plains UAS Test Site (NPUASTS), which has served as the state’s one-stop UAS research and testing facilitator since 2013, bringing together government resources, industry leaders and public stakeholders, to pioneer BVLOS activity.

Four key components give the network its advantage: https://www.vantisuas.com/network

3. Raptor-Inspired Drone With Morphing Wing and Tail for Unprecedented Flight Agility - https://scitechdaily.com/raptor-inspired-drone-with-morphing-wing-and-tail-for-unprecedented-flight-agility/

EPFL engineers have developed a drone with a feathered wing and tail that give it new flight agility.

The engineers already designed a bird-inspired drone with morphing wing back in 2016.

Their new model can adjust the shape of its wing and tail thanks to its artificial feathers.

This week on the InterDrone Podcast we sat down with Scott Mlakar, a 33-year fire service veteran and a 32-year member of the Willoughby (OH) Fire Department

He currently is in charge of developing and implementing Lake County’s Public Safety unmanned aerial systems (UAS) program that serves fire, police, and all county special teams including hazmat, technical rescue, FIU, SAR, bomb squad, SWAT, and narcotics. He is a licensed FAA 107 remote pilot.

Articles from the recording:

Scott is a 33-year fire service veteran and a 32-year member of the Willoughby (OH) Fire Department.

He currently is in charge of developing and implementing Lake County’s Public Safety unmanned aerial systems (UAS) program that serves fire, police, and all county special teams including hazmat, technical rescue, FIU, SAR, bomb squad, SWAT, and narcotics. He is a licensed FAA 107 remote pilot.

Listen to full podcast: https://interdrone.com/interdrone-podcast/

Meet Scott and InterDrone Online December 15-17: https://interdrone.com/interdrone-online/

Articles from the recording

1. Firefighters using drones to help fight fires across the State - https://www.thedesertreview.com/news/firefighters-using-drones-to-help-fight-fires-across-the-state/article_5d9bee08-fe9d-11ea-b692-1f7ac2cd4e3e.html

Crews are continuing to battle 26 major wildfires in California with more than 18,200 firefighters on the front lines.

A spokesperson said that “California firefighters are increasingly deploying drones to provide important situational awareness — enabling them to better spot fire trends and determine the best and safest way to deploy resources”

A spokesperson explained that drones can be deployed quickly to fly overhead and provide real-time visual and heat imagery to command centers using special sensors.

2. Public Safety Drones: the Move Towards Standardized Training - https://dronelife.com/2020/10/05/public-safety-drones-the-move-towards-standardized-training/

An agreement between ASTM International and DRONERESPONDERS will move towards standardized global training of public safety personnel.

The new program, Public Safety UAS STI, “will provide public safety UAS training providers with a third-party evaluation of their curriculum for conformance to applicable ASTM standards,” says the press release. ”

Programs that meet or exceed UAS STI will receive a certificate and digital emblem from DRONERESPONDERS and ASTM confirming they have been approved as a Public Safety UAS (STI) Approved Training Provider.”

3. Ohio Drone, T-Mobile to bring live-streaming tech to drones - https://dronedj.com/2020/10/23/ohio-drone-t-mobile-to-bring-live-streaming-tech-to-drones/

Ohio Drone has partnered with T-Mobile to bring live-streaming capabilities to drones via T-Mobile’s 5G network.

The company hopes to have 100,000 accounts running within the first year of business once it goes live in January 2021.

We sat down with Josh Ziering, Chief Technology Officer and Founder of Kittyhawk, at Kittyhawk.

For more weekly drone industry content delivered to your inbox free: https://interdrone.com/newsletters/

Articles from the recording:

1) Kittyhawk announces Air Control enterprise-driven UTM platform - https://dronedj.com/2020/10/08/kittyhawk-announces-air-control-enterprise-driven-utm-platform/

Kittyhawk has announced its latest product, Air Control, an Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM) platform for enterprise customers and drone operations. The platform allows customers to integrate their own workflows, security, and integrations to make it work for them.

2) Transport Canada Issues New BVLOS Drone Operations Waiver for Power Line Inspections - https://www.aviationtoday.com/2020/10/20/transport-canada-issues-new-bvlos-drone-operations-waiver-power-line-inspections/

MVT Geo-solutions has received approval from Transport Canada to fly unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) flight in uncontrolled airspace in Alma, Quebec.

The Special Flight Operations Certificate (SFOC) granted to MVT by Transport Canada will be only the second BVLOS waiver issued to operate in Canadian airspace and the first such waiver in Quebec. The SFOC will open the door for more complex flights in the future.

Download the Kittyhawk white paper: https://kittyhawk.io/security/

This week on the InterDrone Podcast we sat down with Nicholas Flom, the Executive Director for the Northern Plains Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Test Site. We spoke about DJI being named the top commercial drone maker with an estimated 70% market share, the BVLOS network North Dakota is building and Nick and his team's role in the initiative, the state of drone testing in the United States, and much more.

Connect:

Nicholas Flom: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholas-flom-5a76a01/

CJ Smith: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gcsmithv/

Leslie Wolf: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leslie-wolf-90b3078a/