Drone Hysteria! Gullible Media Organizations have Been Hoodwinked Big Time by the FAA and DOT

Washington, D.C.—We have a full-blown crisis!  We are being told that government must suddenly regulate and register the well over two million drones used by hobbyists, photographers, filmmakers and other ordinary civilians.

For over two years now we’ve heard the media tell us how these little pesky devices will bring down airliners, invade privacy and destroy our way of life.  Pulling the puppet strings of the media has been the FAA and DOT. 

Chicago’s Mayor, Rahm Emanuel said it best back when he was Obama’s Chief of Staff, “Never let a good crisis go to waste!”  This drone crisis is nothing more that a manufactured one.

The FAA has showered the media with their “facts” in that they claim there are well over 700 cases of near misses with airliners and other conventional aircraft.

Missing from these statistics are a single fatality, serious injury or even a report of notable property damage.  Because drones have driven news stories like wildfire a child needing a Band-Aid on his nose from a drone propeller is automatically a national news story. 

I guess nobody in the media noticed that there is not a single incident where a multi-rotor camera drone every touched any conventional aircraft, ever.

More importantly there is not a single identified suspect, prosecution, captured drone, video or even a photograph involving these near miss reports!  Nearly everyone has a video camera in their pockets today but not a single image exists of drone misconduct? 

Now there is a sudden rush to regulate and register every little drone in America!  We are being told that this is being done in the name of public safety.  Is it about safety or just a case of government selling us on more government?  As you read this you know the answer, we’ve been had!

The reason for the sudden rush is simple.   As each year drags on and there are no significant accidents to report or legitimate cases of privacy invasions discovered the need for regulation is non-existent.  The taxpayers can’t then be fleeced over this manufactured impending doom.

Imagine the number of FAA and DOT agents that will be needed to register and inspect every drone in America?  Politicians will be putting their relatives, friends and supporters in well paying government drone chasing jobs! 

Then they will all take credit for the fact that there are no deaths, injuries or property damage as a result of their comprehensive drone enforcement activities!  That’s how our government works!

In the meantime the morons in suits running our shrinking news organizations that helped to create this Drone Hysteria must continue spending millions leasing helicopters and crews to get images.   Using drones would only cost a tiny percentage of what they pay now.

Conventional pilots run the FAA.  They are all aware that drones will be eliminating a significant percentage of their jobs.  They have an obvious conflict of interest here.  It’s in their interest to slow the drone technology down as much as they can.

FAA regulations were all written in blood.  They are based on actual deadly aircraft accidents.  When it came to our little drones the FAA departed from reactive regulation to one of prior restraint.  That’s un-American!  So is the FAA stranglehold on the commercial use of a drone. 

Will we wake up in time to keep the FAA in check?  I doubt it.  

The Courts Rather Than The FAA May Soon Settle the Issue of News Media Use of Camera Drones.

Washington, DC—Suddenly, the FAA has allowed CNN and a Las Vegas agency ArrowData to begin using and testing drones for electronic newsgathering over populated areas under a section 333-waiver application provision.  

Until now the FAA has banned so-called, commercial use of drones while completely ignoring important First Amendment issues. 

As of now many media companies have opted to refuse applying for section-333 waivers because the lack of FAA regulation in effect already allows drone newsgathering.

The FAA just issued a curious memo saying the media can’t use the drones, but they can accept and publish drone video from third party hobbyists.  That begs the question, are the rights of hobbyists somehow greater than news publishers?

Soon the FAA and media content creators may be clashing in a courtroom.

The real issue and mission of the FAA is about safety in our skies. However, to date the nearly two million multi-rotor camera drones have not been involved in a single death, significant injury or property damage anywhere. The 7000 registered helicopters on the other hand have suffered numerous deaths along with epic destruction of property.  

The drones used by hobbyists have been proven to be safe.  There really is no evidence whatsoever that use of drones by the media would be any different.

There are two ways for courts to become involved to settle the potential conflict.  One is for the FAA to cite someone because they used a drone for newsgathering.  The other way would be if a media company or individual simply sued the FAA seeking a Declaratory Judgment that would actually enjoin the FAA from obstructing newsgathering efforts. 

With respect to electronic newsgathering he FAA has to date been placing itself above our Constitution’s First Amendment.  A judge may yet slap the FAA.   The FAA cannot simply trump the Constitution of the United States.

Here is the latest and somewhat ambiguous FAA memo on the drone newsgathering subject:

A Window into Civilian Drones, the FAA and Congressional Oversight

Washington, DC—The FAA was very tight lipped about the drone regulations they are drafting for public comment later this month. 

An FAA official claims they are releasing a Risk Based Proposed Regulatory Program that will integrate commercial drones into the airspace. 

Judging from today’s Congressional hearing they are attempting concentrate on educating the operators of small consumer drones and more serious regulation of anything else.  

Oddly enough they never once mentioned using drones for news video news gathering and only touched lightly on filmmakers.

Once they release their draft drone rule package it must be published and then there is a routine schedule for inviting public comment. Once that period passes the FAA will then set their rule in concrete.  That of course can be challenged later both by Congressional action and litigation.

The FAA seems to be coming to grips that the small camera drone operator will be nearly impossible to regulate.  They are currently haggling with the manufactures about geo-fencing software manufacturing requirements and packaging FAA rules and guidelines with the drones at the point of sale.

The larger drones that will be traveling greater distances and have by nature a higher risk have cumbersome licensing, vehicle air worthiness inspection and registration in their future. 

The rules are going to cover all types of drones fixed wing or multi-rotor and the FAA seems to understand that one size does not fit all.

We will have to see what they do in the coming weeks.  The Obama Administration’s FAA has already put us well behind Canada, Europe and Australia.  Billions of dollars are at stake and the USA is now weaker as a result.

I wish the hearing today could have disclosed real direction but there were lots of questions with very few concrete answers.

Of course the pilots fables of near misses were no small subject of conversation.   They all failed to mention that no deaths or serious injuries have been reported.  Chicken Little is alive and sending out his alarms about falling skies. 

If you’ve got a couple of hours to watch bureaucrats and politicians reading prepared statements and tossing a few questions around you can see this below: