Drones, the FAA and Transport Canada’s approaches to a new unfolding technology

By Mara Paolantonio, Staff Writer

Drones or Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAVs) are becoming increasingly popular in commercial operations. Companies are beginning to look to them as an alternate source as a delivery method, reducing waiting times for the consumer. They also provide aid in times when natural disasters occur for citizens and in clean up. Both the USA and Canada are looking to use UAVs in assisting the community and for military efforts as well. There are some implications, however, regarding both personal security and the safety of civilians.

It is important to note that UAVs do operate on their own but in my interview with Transport Canada, I learned that they are not currently considering the approval of fully autonomous UAVs, meaning those UAV operations that do not permit the pilot to intervene in the management of the flight. Currently, Transport Canada is not conducting tests on UAVs, but it has been working closely with stakeholders for many years to assist the community in enabling their activities in the safest possible manner.

This may be because of the amount of planning and preparation it takes. In the U.S, the situation is a little bit different. Bart Jansen of USA Today writes how drones are planned to be used for several projects but testing is currently behind schedule. Congress planned to have them flying alongside commercial aircraft by September 2015. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) administrator Michael Huerta released a five-year roadmap. It planned 7.500 unmanned aircraft in the air by airlines within that period if regulations were set in place. The problem is how much training will be required for ground-based pilots, how to ensure drones fly safely if they lose contact with their pilots and last how drones and commercial aircraft should warn each other when they are in the same area. The FAA said in a statement, “The FAA is committed to safe, efficient and timely integration of unmanned aircraft systems into our airspace. Over the next several years the FAA will establish regulations and standards for the safe integration of remote piloted (unmanned aircraft) to meet increased demand.”

According to the congressional schedule set in February 2012, the six experimental locations were supposed to be named by August 2012 and the road map was due in February 2013. Legislation calls for drones to be fully integrated into the airspace by September 2015. Huerta insists that the FAA will meet the deadline.

There are many potential uses of UAVs and this is why the FAA will meet the deadline. When I spoke to Roxanne Marchand of Transport Canada, I learned that UAVs have many potential uses, which include, but are not limited to: research (atmospheric, scientific, oceanographic, geophysical) mineral exploration, imaging spectrometry, emergency and disaster monitoring, search and rescue, agricultural spraying, aerial photography (film production, infrastructure inspection, accident reconstruction, etc), promotion and advertising, weather reconnaissance, and flight research. There are many benefits to helping study the Earth’s surface and changing weather patterns.

Currently, Amazon is in the process of utilizing drones for delivering packages to your home. The online retail giant claims it will have deliveries flown to customer’s homes within 30 minutes rather than the standard 3 days. They plan to have this fully functional within five years and Amazon is the first company to use drones in the delivery of packages, which is quite revolutionary.

These new machines are also being used in providing aid in areas that have experienced environmental disasters. Nick Logan of Global News analyzed this further. One Danish company called Danoffice IT began work in the Philippines within the midst of calamity in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan. On November 15, the company said it was donating a “civil drone” and one of its drone specialists to help humanitarian groups assess the damage in Tacloban. Since the equipment arrived on November17, it has been used to assess debris fields, pinpoint blocked roads and to help locate bodies for retrieval. Danoffice IT sales manager Liam Dawson describes the experience, “When organizations first saw it here, they thought it was a bit of a toy. But when they realized all the different uses you could do like body retrieval, road clearance, you name it, I think this is a tool that will be used in every future disaster,”

Although it is great that Amazon is offering to provide faster delivery of packages, there is always the issue of privacy. It seems both the US and Canada are concerned about the privacy issues regarding the use of drones. Roxanne Marchand explains, “Canada and the United States are also seeking greater alignment in their regulatory approaches. UAV program experience discussions have included airspace integration issues; aircraft certification strategies; operator certificates requirements, privacy issues related to UAVs, Arctic UAV activities, first responder use of UAV Systems and personnel licensing requirements.” Transport Canada and the FAA continue to have meetings on progress in relation to UAVs and areas for cooperation and agreement.
Transport Canada is also in the process of updating guidance material, which is expected to be published in 2014, to expedite the process of issuing Special Flight Operations Certificates (SFOC).

In the US, Ohio Congressman Rex Damschroder is concerned about the risk of law enforcement agencies using drones to spy on civilians without legal permission. Currently, police cannot come into your house without a search warrant explains Damschroder. “With drones however, they can fly right over your backyard and take pictures. “
Currently, Damschroder is one of several U.S. legislators to propose bills concerning UAVs. His “proposed bill” would prevent law enforcement agencies from using drones to get evidence or other information without a search warrant.
Here in Canada, there is some protection in place already, as Marchand explains, “the use of UAVs are permitted for commercial operations under the Canadian Aviation Regulations (CARs) when operating in Canadian airspace. Currently the CARs require anyone, including commercial organizations, conducting UAV operations to obtain and comply with the provisions of a SFOC. Applications for SFOCs are dealt with on a case-by-case basis. An individual assessment of the associated risks is conducted for each operation before a certificate is issued. An SFOC can only be issued once a requestor demonstrates that the risks associated with the operation of the UAV will be managed to an acceptable level. It is essential that the certificate holder be aware of the responsibility to ensure that the UAV operation is conducted in such a way that the safety of persons and property on the ground and other airspace users is not jeopardized.”

Canada’s office of the Privacy Commissioner has raised the issue of drones being used for domestic spying by hobbyists. SFOCs are mainly used to ensure the safety of the flight rather than protecting the privacy of citizens. A small camera can be easily mounted onto a model aircraft. The commissioner is mainly concerned that, “the model aircraft can be virtually indistinguishable from other small UAVs.”

There are times when UAVs, if not used properly, may cause more harm than good. It is important to note that in accordance with the Aeronautics Act, Transport Canada is only responsible for the conduct of civil UAV operations. The Department of National Defence is responsible for the conduct of all military aircraft operations, including military UAVs, regardless of the airspace in which they are operated.
In his story, Logan explains the use of armed drones in warfare has raised concern for human rights groups and the UN. The US was held responsible for several civilian deaths in Pakistan’s North Wazirstan Province, which happened in July. The invasion left 18 labourers dead and Amnesty International considered these to be, “war crimes or extrajudicial executions.” Amnesty and Human Rights Watch questioned the legality of the U.S. using the technology to carry out targeted attacks in countries-Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia-where it was not fighting a war. Amnesty believes, “the sad reality is USA continues to rely on a ‘global war’doctrine in attempting to justify a borderless war with al-Qa’ida, the Taliban and those perceived to be their allies.” The UN recently expressed concern over the possibility of UAVs being used for “illegal” purposes by all states, not just the U.S.

Special Rapporteur Ben Emmerson recently said there needs to be more transparency when it comes to how drones are used. Ememrson says, “a world where multiple states use weapons in secrecy is a less secure world.” The unmanned aircraft however, also has its supporters. “All the evidence we have so far shows that drones do better at both identifying the terrorist and avoiding collateral damage than anything else we have,” Bradley J. Strawser, a former Air Force officer and a professor at the Naval Postgraduate School, told the New York Times.

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My name is Mara Paolantonio, I just graduated from York University Bachelor of Arts program, I studied Italian and Communication Studies. I wrote and edited for Excalibur Publications, York University’s paper. I also wrote for Panoram Italia, a few articles and blog as well. I hope to write about stories that relate to people’s lives (to interview them and tell their story) as well as inform citizens on important issues. I attended my first social media conference this year at York University. My political beliefs lie in the middle. I have a website, www.feminismandtechnology.weebly.com my twitter is @82Mara