Imagine placing an online order from Amazon or Walmart or Dominos and then running outside to await your package (or pizza) to fall from the sky. This may sound like science fiction, but thanks to the increasing usage of commercial drone delivery it is already a reality. And not just in parts of America, but around the world.
Drones can do more than improve the speed at which Walmart can deliver your latest order or Dominos can deliver your pizza. A must-watch video by real-life rocket scientist Matt Rober shows how drone company Zipline is using them to deliver life-saving medical supplies to otherwise inaccessible locations in Rwanda, including blood and blood plasma. This is a much simpler and more efficient way of getting Rwandans needed medical supplies than waiting for the government to invest the time and resources into paving the roads.
Zipline’s drone technology has made it possible for blood supplies to reach remote Rwandan villagers faster than they reach hospitals in the United States, and the supplies delivered by drone can last longer than those delivered by more traditional means. According to Zipline’s website, drones can also improve American health care in a variety of ways, including providing timely delivery of prescription medicine, thus eliminating the need for a panicked trip to the pharmacy. Drones can also speed up the delivery of diagnoses and lab results to physician offices, allowing physicians to spend less time making a diagnosis and more time treating their patients.
Drones can also improve the efficiency of many businesses, including those in agriculture and tourism, by improving their ability to obtain needed supplies in a timely manner. Widespread use of drones may thus help alleviate the impact of future supply shortages like those that plagued the American economy following the ending of the COVID lockdowns.
Replacing automobiles with drones reduces traffic congestion and since drones are not powered by gas, they emit 97% less pollutants into the air than automobiles. Commercial drones may thus be the “real” Green New Deal.
At this point you may be asking yourself, if drones are so great where is my flying pizza? Well, not surprisingly, one reason for the delay is the federal government, specifically the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Despite the fact that commercial use of drones has been in existence for almost a decade, the FAA has not developed uniform guidelines for granting waivers. This means the waiver process is time consuming and unpredictable.
Fortunately, Virginia Democratic Senator (and Chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee) Mark Warner and Republican Senator (and Republican Whip) John Thune have teamed up to introduce “The Increasing Competitiveness for American Drones Act” (S. 307). The Warner-Thune bill streamlines the FAA’s process for approval to operate “Unmanned Aerial Vehicles” (UAV) beyond the line of sight (BLS), which is bureaucratese for a drone capable of flying beyond the point where the drone’s operator can see it. Specifically, the bill establishes a “risk methodology” to evaluate how much scrutiny regulators must apply to submissions for approval to operate drones for commercial use.
Under the bill anyone seeking federal permission to operate a drone under 55 pounds must conduct a risk assessment and submit an FAA audit of the assessment. Those wishing to operate a drone between 55 and 320 pounds must not only conduct a risk assessment, but must also submit “materials based on the risk assessment” to the FAA and obtain a “Special Airworthiness Certificate” from the agency. These certificates would allow drone flights up to 400 feet above ground. Drones weighing more than 320 pounds would have to undergo the same approval process as commercial airplanes.
The bill also creates the office of the Associate Administration of UAS Integration and a UAS Integration Unit, both within the FAA. These bodies would have exclusive authority to issue permits to operate drones. While not an ideal solution, S. 307 would take a major step forward to ensuring the federal government does not delay the use of commercial drones. The fact that the bill is backed by influential Senators of both parties (Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden of Oregon is also a cosponsor) should boost this legislation’s chances of passing the Senate and getting through the House.
However, in today’s political climate nothing can be taken for granted. Those who want to ensure the FAA does not continue to be a road (or sky) block to the realization of commercial drone delivery’s full potential should contact their Senators and request they support S. 307: The Increasing Competitiveness for American Drones Act.
