FAA To Begin Requiring Registration Of Drones
CHICAGO (CBS) -- If someone in your family finds a drone under the Christmas tree this year, they'll need to know about a new FAA requirement.
Starting next Monday, drone owners must register with the Federal Aviation Administration before taking flight. The idea is to try to make sure people know drones are not toys.
Drone owners must pay a $5 registration fee; and provide their name, mailing address, and email. Registration is free for the first 30 days.
Tuesday morning, the Union League Club hosted a forum on drones called "Invasion of the Drones: Our Safety and Privacy," and Regional FAA Administrator Barry Cooper told the small crowd there the agency intends to use the registration requirement as a chance to educate people how to safely operate drones.
"Our intention is not to excessively go out and fine people, but to get people to understand the rules, and to comply with the rules," he said.
Cooper said the FAA has been working with drone manufacturers to share information with users who might have received one as a gift, but don't really know about restrictions on where they can fly.
"We're adapting to the challenges that are out there, and trying to adapt our rules to make sure that we can appropriately regulate," he said.
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One new report shows 158 incidents in the last two years in which a drone came within 200 feet of another aircraft. In 28 of those incidents, the pilot was forced to take evasive maneuvers.
"I think the FAA was struggling with how do we educate new users, and by creating this registry, we now have a direct link to every user, which will allow us to do a tremendous amount of education," former FAA assistant administrator Scott Brenner said.
Many drone hobbyists recognize the importance of the new registry.
"The motivation in creating the registry is to give drone pilots some liability for what they're doing with their aircraft. Right now, there's a lot of people who go the store, buy something, and go fly it in a place where they shouldn't, putting other people at risk," Ken Loo said.
To find out more about registering drones with the FAA, click here.
Cooper said President Barack Obama has directed another federal agency to pursue privacy issues with drones, not the FAA.
