FAA Drone Registration Under Scrutiny After Commercial Drone Owners Filed Lawsuit

The Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) drone registration that took effect in December is now under fire after several commercial drone owners challenged the regulations in the federal court.  Under FAA's regulation, drone owners who failed to register on the last day of FAA's drone registration on Feb.19 could face civil and criminal offense.

As per FAA's drone registration, recreational owners of unmanned aircraft known as drones that weigh over 0.55 pounds must register with the government.  Drone owners who failed to register until the last date given could be imprisoned of up to three years, and may pay $277,500 civil and criminal penalties, according to Clinton Herald.  FAA officials claimed that drone owners and their quadcopters cause a great threat to the national airspace.  Since the regulation has been implemented, several critics and private aircraft groups have shown their move to denounce FAA's directive.

"The objective here is very safety and education focused. Just the fact that somebody registers enables us to educate them, provide them educational information so they understand they're operating in what we call the national airspace system," Earl Lawrence, FAA's drone integration office director, told reporters on a conference call in November, Reuters reports.

Since the implementation of FAA's drone registration last year, the Academy of Model Aeronautics directed their members not to conform to the registration.  Drone owners including hobbyists and technology devotees have criticized the registration as a huge block for innovation.  In December, a drone owner in Maryland filed a lawsuit against the agency, the first of its kind to condemn the regulation in the federal court.  Another suit was also filed by a non-profit group TechFreedom, The Daily Signal claims.

FAA's drone registration costs $5.  The regulation also claims that drone and remote control aircraft operators must inform the airport authorities when they are operating within a 5-mile radius of any airport. What can you say about FAA's regulation?

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FAA Drone Registration, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Drone, Drone regulations, Drone Registration

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