Drone laws

Since launching its mandatory registry on Monday, some 45,000 drones have already been logged with the FAA's online database, which is now undergoing temporary maintenance to deal with an anticipated Christmas Day rush.

After first flagging its intentions in October, the Federal Aviation Administration has today announced its drone database which requires owners of small unmanned aircraft to register their vehicles or face very steep penalties, which could include time in prison.

The USDoT Secretary Anthony Foxx announced today that Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) in the United States will soon be subject to federal registration. A task force will be established to provide recommendations on how to best implement a registration process.

The Federal Aviation Administration has teamed up with private firm CACI to test out technology that detects drones and their pilots buzzing around airports, in hope of preventing potential collisions with manned aircraft. ​

In further evidence of the growing popularity of drones for commercial purposes, the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) this week revealed it has granted more than 1,000 exemptions to existing drone laws.

Amazon's ambitious plans to deliver small parcels by drones just took another little jump towards reality, with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) launching a new program to study the use of drones beyond the operator's line of sight.

Last month, Amazon was given permission to test a delivery drone prototype in the US, but there was a hitch – the vehicle cleared for use had already become obsolete. Now the agency has granted Amazon a green light to put its current models to the test.

Amazon has taken its Prime Air operations north of the US border to develop its delivery drones with greater regulatory freedom. A report in The Guardian on Monday revealed that the company has been testing its drones for the last few months at a top secret site in British Columbia, Canada.

If you want to operate your drone for commercial reasons in the US today, there are considerable hoops you'll need to fly through first. But an announcement today from the FAA is set to make this process more efficient, throwing a blanket approval over operators that meet a certain criteria.

It's been more than a year in the making but it seems that the regulatory wheels are beginning to turn on Amazon's bold plans for drone delivery. The FAA has today granted the online retailer permission to start testing its unmanned aircraft as part of its Prime Air initiative.

In the latest move towards opening up skies in the US for commercial drones, NASA and aerospace company Exelis have teamed up to develop a prototype air traffic control system.

In welcome news for businesses banking on the commercial potential of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has put forward a proposal for guidelines surrounding commercial drone use.