The United States Government Accountability Office concluded in a report to Congress that measuring progress and addressing potential privacy concerns would facilitate integration of UAS into the National Airspace System. The report concluded that progress has been made, but additional work is needed to overcome many of the obstacles to the safe integration of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) that GAO identified in 2008.
GAO reported in 2008 that UAS could not meet the aviation safety requirements developed for manned aircraft and that this posed several obstacles to safe and routine operation in the national airspace system. These obstacles still exist and include the inability for UAS to sense and avoid other aircraft and airborne objects in a manner similar to manned aircraft; vulnerabilities in the command and control of UAS operations; the lack of technological and operational standards needed to guide safe and consistent performance of UAS; and final regulations to accelerate the safe integration of UAS into the national airspace system.
The Joint Planning and Development Office of the FAA has provided UAS stakeholders with a framework to collaborate and coordinate their UAS integration efforts.
To read the full report, click here.