FAA Expected to Add Real-Time Tracking to BVLOS Drone Rule in Response to New Jersey UFO Reports

According to a statement made earlier this week by the FAA’s executive director of rulemaking, Brandon Roberts, the FAA is expected to have a requirement for real-time tracking of certain civilian drones included within a forthcoming drone beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) rule.  The BVLOS rule is intended to allow drones to go out of their operator’s direct eyesight. Currently, FAA approves waivers for BVLOS flights on a case-by-case basis. This action is in response to widespread reports last year of unexplained drone sightings over New Jersey, whether it was over President Trump’s National Golf Club in Bedminster or the U.S. Army Picatinny Arsenal.

The BVLOS rule is currently pending DOT and OMB approvals and still subject to change before being released for public comment.  The real time tracking requirement was compared to tracking services like FlightAware or ADS-B Exchange, which allow people to see a flight’s tracking information in real time, or to see a flight’s origin, landing point, and the route it took to get there.

Currently, the FAA practice is to go to drone operators or companies after something happens — in the same way that some uncoordinated flights in New Jersey sent local officials searching for answers — the new approach would allow the agency to aggregate that information in near real time.  The agency does require privately-operated drones to be registered, and also to broadcast a digital license plate that shows its identifying serial number, altitude, and approximate location (Remote ID), but those signals that broadcast the Remote ID don’t travel very far due to the limiting distance of Bluetooth or WiFi. The FAA’s drone integration office reports that there are 872,000 drones registered with the FAA and that 47 percent of those are Remote ID compliant.