The awardees of the long-anticipated Presidential UAS Integration Pilot Program were
announced in May. The municipalities that were selected to participate are:
- Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, Durant, Okla.
- City of San Diego
- Innovation and Entrepreneurship Investment Authority, Herndon, Va.
- Kansas Department of Transportation, Topeka, Kan.
- Lee County Mosquito Control District, Ft. Myers, Fla.
- Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority, Memphis
- North Carolina Department of Transportation, Raleigh, N.C.
- North Dakota Department of Transportation, Bismarck, N.D.
- City of Reno, Nev.
- University of Alaska-Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska
More information about the type of UAS operation being proposed by each municipality
can be found at:
https://www.faa.gov/uas/programs_partnerships/uas_integration_pilot_program/awardee
s/
Mr. Richards and Mr. Weidner will be working closely with the agency on these projects.
We will know more detail on how or if these operations will affect air traffic control as we
learn more about the details of each proposal.
NATCA/FAA LOST LINK WORKGROUP
The NATCA/FAA Lost Link Work Group met the week of May 21st at General Atomics in
San Diego. This workgroup is close to finishing its recommendations and a final report
will be available later this year. Thanks to Abigail Anderson (ZOA), Jeremy McGinty
(ZAU), Danny Watson (ZAB), Jamie Sanders (COS), and Joe Klimes (TRI) for their
willingness to participate in this project. The safety and efficiency of the NAS is largely
based on standardized procedures and the work of this group will go a long way towards
standardizing Unmanned Aircraft System operations in the NAS.
SYR CHASE PLANE OPERATIONS
Mr. Weidner and his FAA counterparts visited SYR on June 4-5 to observe and discuss
their UAS chase plane operations. The New York National Guard began flying MQ9
aircraft from the SYR last year, making SYR the first FAA controlled civilian airport that is
mixing manned and unmanned aircraft in the same traffic pattern.
In order for the unmanned aircraft to transition from the local pattern out to the military
operating areas while complying with FAR 91.113 – See and Avoid, they are
accompanied by a chase plane. As the controllers at SYR and the guard unit have
gained experience with the chase plane operation, they have identified areas of concern.
Given the inevitable expansion of unmanned aircraft operations, NATCA and the FAA
will be working to improve standards and requirements for chase plane operations.
UAS QUESTIONS
As a reminder, any UAS related questions can be addressed to Mr. Weidner and Mr.
Richards at UAS@natca.net.
