What Regulations Will Get Drones Ready to Deliver to Your Front Door?

Both pilots and companies are navigating a thin line between security and innovation. Host Grant Guillot talks with leaders, influencers, and experts across the drone industry to guide us through the complex web of technology and policy in the United States.

Every angle of the drone industry has a unique perspective. Organizations that bridge the gap between defense and commercial play a huge role, like FirePoint Innovation. The organization’s Technical Director, Paul Jonas, joined Drones in America host Grant Guillot to talk about FirePoint’s role in the field and more.

FirePoint is a partnership between Wichita State University and the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, Aviation and Missile Center (DEVCOM AvMC). Their mission is to accelerate technology with all stakeholders—government regulators, defense, commercial sectors, and academics.

“I get to help an entire industry rather than one company.” -Paul Jonas

Jonas said, “We connect smart people inside and outside of defense. We are a research arm for the aviation industry, partnering with the Army around unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), which is a basic tenet of their modernization efforts.”

Jonas has 47 years in the aviation industry, serving as a chief engineer for companies like Beechcraft and Raytheon. He helped establish FirePoint, as well. “I get to help an entire industry rather than one company.”

Jonas and Guillot then discussed the new drone rules that go into effect on April 21, which allows for some flights over people and moving vehicles at night. “It’s a great leap forward. The lights for visibility and having the Remote ID in place, as well as specialized training, aren’t much different from commercial flights at night,” Jonas commented.

Jonas remarked that this move forward is also keeping a dialogue going between regulators and the industry, which is critical in seeing where the technology can go. This technology is currently taking the place of other processes, but once there is comfort with it, then the sky’s the limit. “We’ll be inventing new ways to use the technology,” he added.

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