Federal certificate smoothes way for unmanned aircraft missions

A new federal certificate will allow the unmanned aircraft center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks to respond more rapidly to clients’ requests. A new mission can now begin within 48 hours instead of the previous 90 days.

The Federal Aviation Administration has issued a national certificate of authorization to the Pan Pacific Unmanned Aerial Systems Test Range Complex, which is managed by UAF’s Alaska Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration.

ACUASI can now fly small unmanned aerial vehicles under 55 pounds up to 200 feet above ground level anywhere in the country, except for restricted airspace and areas close to airports and heliports. Before this, ACUASI had to get a unique authorization for each aircraft, location and mission. The aircraft must still remain within sight of the pilot.

“This allows us to move at the speed of business,” said Marty Rogers, chief executive officer of the test range complex and director of ACUASI. “It will save a lot of time for UAF.”

In addition, the new certificate allows ACUASI to fly various types of UAVs, such as a rotary wing and a fixed-wing plane, on one mission. Before, each type of UAV used on a mission required a separate authorization. Different types of UAVs have different capabilities, and some missions require more than one type.

Pilots of UAVs in test site operations will no longer have to be commercially certified pilots but can be recreational or sport pilots, and a valid driver’s license will satisfy the medical requirement. This will reduce the cost of commercial UAV operation.

“This national certificate of authorization provides immediate and significant benefit to not only the test sites but to the entire UAS community,” Rogers said.

“In our case, it is not just Alaska which benefits from this authority,” Rogers said. “Our state partners in Oregon and Hawaii and our UAF partners, Kansas State University and Mississippi State University, will now be able to immediately start supporting client needs. It removes a significant bottleneck.”

FAA rules for commercial use of UAVs are much more strict than those for hobby use. The UAVs operated under the Pan Pacific Test Range Complex are much more capable and carry higher quality sensors and cameras than hobby UAVs.