NAAA Comments on Petition for Fixed-Wing Drone BVLOS Part 137 Operations
Last week, NAAA submitted comments on a petition from Pyka Inc. (Pyka) to amend their operational exemption for the Pyka Pelican uncrewed aerial application system (UAAS). The Pelican is unique as a fixed-wing aircraft with a 38-foot wingspan, 80 MPH working speed and 1,320-pound gross weight. The petition seeks amended relief from 14 CFR to:
- Conduct UAAS operations beyond visual line-of-sight (BVLOS) of the pilot-in-command (PIC) while employing a dedicated visual observer (VO) who will maintain VLOS with the UAAS and surrounding airspace for the duration of each operation; and
- Operate closer than 500 feet to non-participating persons, vehicles and structures to treat the entirety of a field, including edges which border roads.
NAAA’s comments were primarily directed toward the proposed “BVLOS with a VO” operations, highlighting concerns for the safety of crewed aerial application operations occurring in adjacent fields:
The risk profile for the Pelican is very different from other UAAS which can takeoff, operate and land while remaining over controlled-access property. The Pelican must take off and land from an adjacent area, make transient flights to and from the application site and conduct turn-around maneuvers outside the field boundary between each swath. It is also significantly larger and faster than other UAAS, while being less maneuverable.
Regarding the operational footprint with time spent in airspace outside the application site, NAAA pointed out that the larger footprint (in both area and altitude) presents a much greater likelihood of encounter with a crewed agricultural aircraft than would be presented by a vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) UAAS, particularly during busy periods of the growing season. This hazard, coupled with the significantly higher working speed of the Pelican, makes it imperative that the PIC be able to rapidly identify airspace conflicts and give way to crewed aircraft. The proposed employment of a VO who will communicate the conflict and relay the appropriate mitigation instructions to the PIC will introduce a delay and disconnect for which NAAA finds additional risk mitigation necessary. Ultimately, NAAA maintains that BVLOS operations of any type should require the use of a detect and avoid (DAA) system which is certificated or verified by FAA as effective against both cooperative (ADS-B out equipped) and non-cooperative crewed agricultural aircraft operations.
NAAA expressed concern, separate from the VO’s ability to monitor the surrounding airspace, that the PIC/VO will be adequately positioned to fulfill the §137.37 obligation to not create a hazard to persons or property on the surface. This ability to see persons on the surface is also critical in complying with the EPA’s Application Exclusion Zone (AEZ) Rule.
NAAA also commented in contingent support of the requested relief to operate closer than 500 feet to non-participating persons, vehicles and structures in alignment with §137.49. The contingency would be that FAA mitigate the increased risk borne from the UAAS having to make turns farther into the airspace over adjacent fields and should also reflect demonstrated ability to comply with the AEZ Rule.
You can view NAAA’s comments here.