Beer-delivery drone grounded by FAA
Local brewery Lakemaid
was testing a new drone delivery system to airlift frosty cases of beer
to fishermen holed up in ice shacks on Mille Lacs Lake.
.
After spotting a Lakemaid YouTube video
that went up last week of one of the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) on
a test run, the Federal Aviation Administration contacted Lakemaid and
told the company to stop.
.
Unfortunately for
Lakemaid fans and anyone else dreading a walk to the corner store, it's
currently against the law to fly drones for commercial purposes or above
400 feet in the United States. The FAA is working on a comprehensive
set of rules and regulations that will pave the way for commercial drone
flight, but the legislation won't be ready until at least 2015 and
drones might not be in the skies until 2017.
.
Until then, thirsty fishermen must obtain their beverages through old-fashioned terrestrial delivery methods.
The great beer grounding of 2014 might just be the issue that will turn Americans into pro-drone advocates. A WhiteHouse.gov petition
has already gone up, asking the Obama administration to issue Lakemaid
an airworthiness certificate. So far, 183 thirsty UAV advocates have
signed the petition (only 99,817 signatures to go!).
Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul has previously expressed
his support of aerial beer delivery on Twitter. In August he said
"Perhaps I am not against ALL drones!" and linked to a news story about a
drone delivering beers during a music festival in South Africa.
Only amateurs are allowed to fly drones
at this time, and they're limited to small vehicles under 55 pounds.
They can only operate the aircraft for fun, not for profit, and they
must adhere to local and federal laws. For example, drones are not
allowed to cruise over populated areas.
Some groups have received exceptions to test drones for research purposes.
"While we are evaluating
many potential uses of [UAVs] as we move toward their safe integration
into the nation's airspace, commercial operation of such aircraft is not
yet allowed," said FAA spokesperson Elizabeth Cory in an e-mail.
.
Announcing plans to
deliver goods by drone has been a popular publicity stunt for U.S.
companies over the past year. On a recent "60 Minutes" segment, Amazon
demonstrated a drone delivery system it's working on for packages. The
company conducted the tests outside the country to avoid breaking U.S.
law. In June, the Domino's pizza chain said it was developing a drone
capable of delivering up to two pizzas.
.
The FAA has asked other
companies and institutions to ground their drones in the past year. The
agency has contacted a company in Wisconsin that used drones to capture
aerial footage for real estate. And the Drone Journalism Lab at the
University of Nebraska received a cease-and-desist letter for its
attempts to use drones for reporting purposes.
Even once FAA
regulations are in place, we likely won't see the skies filling up with
beer deliveries. Interested companies will have to get proper training
and licenses.
"We are concerned about
possible careless and reckless operation, especially if someone on the
ground is hurt by an object or objects falling from the [UAVs]," said
Cory, citing the FAA regulation that prohibits careless flying.
Delivery of goods is
expected to be a small segment of future drone market. The bigger
commercial uses will focus on agriculture, law enforcement and aerial
photography.
.
Delicious test cases
like beer and fast-food delivery might be gimmicky, but they can help
ease the public's concerns about drones in the sky. The technology is
mostly known for its military applications, and civil liberties groups
are concerned about drones being used for surveillance by law
enforcement.
.
Local residents in Deer Trail, Colorado, have even
attempted to pass a law that makes it legal to shoot down drones with
the proper drone hunting license.
But the next generation
of friendly drones aren't all packing weapons or collecting data for the
NSA. Some just want to bring you a nice cold one and maybe a slice
without getting stuck in traffic.
No comments:
Post a Comment