A bipartisan trio of U.S. senators is proposing doubling federal funding to support integration of commercial unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) into the National Airspace System. Sens. Mark Warner (D-Virginia), John Hoeven (R-North Dakota), and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nevada) are offering an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2019 transportation, housing, and urban development portion of the "Minibus II" spending package that would double the matching grants the Department of Transportation (DOT) could offer to companies working with the FAA’s UAS integration test sites to $6 million.
In May, the DOT announced commencement a 2.5-year pilot program with 10 public-private partnerships to test drones in ways that are not currently legal, including UAS flight beyond visual line of sight, at night, and over people to deliver packages, and to test detect and avoid technologies and the security of pilot-aircraft datalinks. Data collected from these operations will help the DOT and FAA craft new enabling rules that allow more complex low-altitude operations; identify ways to balance local and national interests related to UAS integration; improve communications with local, state, and tribal jurisdictions; address security and privacy risks; and accelerate the approval of operations that currently require special authorizations.
“This amendment will ensure we continue supporting advancements in the safe and responsible integration of unmanned systems in our airspace,” said Warner.