San Diego County is a hub for drone manufacturing. There are nearly a dozen companies around the county involved in the manufacturing of drones and drone parts.
Innov8tive Designs in Vista is one such company.
KPBS Evening Edition spoke to Innov8tive Designs CEO Lucien Miller about how regulations may be affecting the drone manufacturing business and various uses for drones. Drones are being considered for use in firefighting and search and rescue.
Meanwhile, Amazon is considering using drones for package deliveries.
Just this week the Federal Aviation Administration gave retail giant Amazon the green light to begin testing its air-delivery drones. The FAA issued a certificate for the company to experiment with drones for research, development and crew training.
The FAA said Thursday that under the provisions of the certificate, the flights must be conducted at 400 feet or below during daylight hours. The drone must also remain within line of sight of the pilot and observer. The person flying the aircraft, meanwhile, must have a private pilot's certificate and current medical certificate.
Amazon must also provide monthly data to the FAA on the number of flights conducted, pilot duty time per flight, unusual hardware or software malfunctions and other information.
Amazon had asked the FAA for permission to fly drones for package deliveries last July.
