11/4/2015. Is There a Drone in Your Future? Practical and Legal Implications of the Use of UAVs on Construction Sites

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1 National Welcome Michael Lapicola, Partner Faegre Baker Daniels Is There a Drone in Your Future? Practical and Legal Implications of the Use of UAVs on Construction Sites Jim Harnett, Partner Patrick Thornberry, Attorney Wind Farm Construction Survey with Drone 1

2 High-Rise Delivery with Drone New Apple HQ Construction Site with Drone Construction Uses of Small Unmanned Aircraft 2

3 Construction Uses of Small Unmanned Aircraft Construction Uses of Small Unmanned Aircraft Remote inspections (visual only) Quantity surveys (earthwork, demolition, etc.) Progress surveys Small deliveries Remote supervision Risks Associated with Small Unmanned Aircraft 3

4 Risks Associated with Small Unmanned Aircraft Airspace interference Privacy violations Capturing too much information Crashes Dropped payloads Visual inspections only Lack of proper insurance Lack of regulatory approval Current Landscape for Commercial Drone Usage Current Landscape for Commercial Drone Usage Section 333 Exemption Approx. 2,000 have been granted to date across numerous industries (construction accounting for approximately one-fifth of exemptions) Key requirements: *Operator of drone must be a licensed pilot Drone must be operated in visual line of sight Drone cannot be operated at night Drone must weigh 55 pounds or less Drone cannot be flown over 500 feet above ground level Use must not compromise the safety of persons or property on the ground Drone must be registered with FAA (have an N-Number) May not operate over anyone not directly involved in the operation 4

5 Current Landscape for Commercial Drone Usage Section 333 Exemption Process: File application for exemption with FAA (must include specific requests for each portion of the Federal Aviation Regulations for which exemption is requested) Part of the application typically requires the submission of an operations manual to be used by the operator Review process takes approximately 12 weeks, subject to follow up requests and/or atypical operational requests Future Landscape for Commercial Drone Usage Future Landscape for Commercial Drone Usage FAA has released Proposed Part 107, which is required to be finalized by June 2016 The FAA has already failed to meet the initial deadline for finalizing these rules, so it is possible that final rules could be delayed beyond June 2016 Key differences from existing landscape: Pilot license would not be required, but operator would need to pass an aeronautical knowledge test at an FAA-approved knowledge testing center microuas option that would allow operations over people not involved in the operation microuas means drones weighing up to 4.4 pounds The FAA s summary of the proposed rules is available at: pdf 5

6 Proposed Rule Requirements Operational Limitations Unmanned aircraft must weigh less than 55 lbs. Visual line-of-site (VLOS) only No operation over people Daylight-only operations Maximum airspeed of 100 mph (87 knots) Maximum altitude of 500 feet Requires preflight inspection by the operator Operators would be required to: Pass an initial aeronautical test Obtain an unmanned aircraft operator certificate Conduct a preflight inspection Conclusion Take aways: For now, Section 333 exemption required For now, legal operation requires licensed pilot New rule not expected until June 2016 at earliest New rule expected to do away with pilot requirement But new rule will still have numerous compliance requirements Micro UAS may be the most convenient option Questions? Jim Harnett, Partner Patrick Thornberry, Attorney 18 6