The Federal Aviation Administration has released long-awaited draft rules on the operation of pilotless drones, opening the nation's airspace to the commercial possibilities of the burgeoning technology, but not without restrictions.
In short, the proposed rules that have been a decade in the making would limit drones to flying no more than 100 mph at an altitude no higher than 500 feet. The FAA bans their use at night and says they cannot be operated over people not directly involved in the flight.
The FAA also will require anyone using Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) for commercial purposes to obtain a special pilot certification to operate them.
In a statement, the White House called drones "a potentially transformative technology in diverse fields such as agriculture, law enforcement, coastal security, military training, search and rescue, first responder medical support, critical infrastructure inspection, and many others."
The statement says that the proposed rules ensure "that the Federal Government's use of UAS takes into account ... important concerns and in service of them, promotes better accountability and transparent use of this technology."
Reuters, quoting industry experts, calls the new rules "relatively benign."
Even so, the news agency says, "the rule was unlikely to help Amazon.com in its quest to deliver packages with unmanned drones, since its approach requires an FAA-certified small drone pilot to fly the aircraft and keep it line of sight at all times - factors not envisioned in the online retailer's plan."
The draft regulations must still undergo public comment and revision before being officially adopted.
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