The Federal Aviation Administration has launched the fast-track Deter program for first-time drone offenders, offering reduced penalties in exchange for admitting liability, but strictly excluding serious violations such as drug offences, weaponised drones, and photographing sensitive military installations.

FAA backs down on threat to prosecute drone pilots By DRONELIFE Features Editor Jim Magill The FAA has apparently backed down on its threat to impose criminal penalties on drone operators flying in the vicinity of federal law enforcement vehicles, after a journalism rights group sued the agency in federal court to strike down its […] The post FAA Reverses Course on Drone Flight Limits Near Federal Operations appeared first on DRONELIFE.

U.S. faces multiple challenges in counter-UAS buildup By DRONELIFE Features Editor Jim Magill (Editor’s note: This is part of a series of stories on efforts to establish new counter-UAS protocols in the U.S. to protect high-profile sporting events and critical infrastructure from the potential threats posed by drones flown by careless or hostile actors.) As […] The post Is the U.S. Ready for Drone Threats at World Cup Scale? appeared first on DRONELIFE.

As detection outpaces enforcement, the FAA introduces faster penalties for rule-breaking operators Detection Has Outpaced Enforcement Drone detection is no longer the problem. From stadium security to federal agencies, authorities can now identify unauthorized drone activity in real time. But enforcement has struggled to keep up: once a violation is detected, the process to act […] The post FAA Moves to Close Drone Enforcement Gap with New DETER Program appeared first on DRONELIFE.

Limited public details raise questions about “v.USA 1.0” and how international companies can meet U.S. security requirements The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has granted conditional approval to the Sees.ai v.USA. 1.0 Uncrewed Aircraft System, exempting it from the agency’s Covered List restrictions. The approval, based on a determination by the Department of War (DoW), is […] The post FCC Grants Conditional Approval to Sees.ai UAS, Signaling New Path for Foreign Drone Systems ap