CNN received a waiver allowing routine drone flights above crowds, a milestone for the industry seeking larger use of the remote controlled devices for everything from insurance inspections to covering news.
The approval is the 1st time the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has granted a waiver for unlimited flights over people, the news network said in an emailed statement. The standards used in the application is applied to other applicants, potentially opening vast new uses by the media and other industries for so-called unmanned aerial systems, or UAS.
“This waiver signifies a critical step forward not only for CNN’s UAS operations, but also the commercial UAS industry at massive,” aforesaid David vigilante, senior vice president of legal for CNN.
The FAA presently prohibits drone flights overhead, though its rules allow for waivers if applicants will show there’s no risk of injury. limited waivers are issued to filmmakers et al for flights over contained areas after those on the ground consented.
The small device that was approved, a Snap drone, has internal rotors and is designed to interrupt apart within the event of a crash to prevent injuries. Time Warner inc.’s CNN and Vantage robotics, the company that built it, say they spent 2 years designing and testing the drone.
The Snap drone weighs 1.37 pounds (0.62 kilograms), and its four rotors are encased to reduce the chances of injury. It’s designed to break into harmless smaller pieces if it crashes, according to the company’s web site. It can be snapped back together and reused after a crash, according to the company.
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source:bloomberg.com
