This Application will Help Regulate Drone Traffic

This post is also available in: עברית (Hebrew)

Unauthorized drones entering secure perimeters have made the news regularly in recent months, with unmanned aerial vehicles interrupting airplane traffic at airports in London, Dublin, Dubai, and Newark, New Jersey. Earlier this month, the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) ordered that drones display registration numbers on their exterior, like the kinds that label small planes.

Now, the FAA wants to provide drone pilots with tools for flying safely and responsibly. FAA administrator Dan Elwell said: “As drone sales increase and our nation’s airspace becomes busier and more complex, it’s vital that we work smarter and partner with the private sector to develop innovative products that advance safety.”

The FAA has recently signed a partnership deal with drone management software startup Kittyhawk to redesign the B4UFly app. that helps drone pilots understand where they’re legally allowed to fly their drones.

The new app for determining whether you’re compliant with federal law will be available for Android and iOS smartphones in Q2 2019, according to venturebeat.com. The company’s mobile solution has been used to carry out 500,000 flights in the U.S. since 2015.

The app will utilize Dynamic Airspace, color-coded software the company currently provides to enterprise customers for drone management that factors in FAA data, unmanned aircraft system (UAS) maps, and weather.

Last fall, Kittyhawk was allowed into the FAA’s Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability (LAANC) program, which lets it grant commercial operators the ability to fly in controlled airspace, like near airports.

The app supplies intuitive real-time airspace information and makes it easy to understand LAANC authorizations.