Commercial drone flights in U.S. airspace remain illegal despite desperate attempts of private companies that show its enormous collective benefits.

Why the FAA Fear Drones

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) argues that flying unmanned aearial vehicles (UAVs) presents more danger than the benefits it claims to have and could put people's lives at stake. For one, the FAA fears that private companies might overstep its boundaries and encroach on people's privacy.

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Another FAA concern is the threat UAVs pose to the ariline industry. The incident in New York City's Hudson River in which a flock of Canadian geese struck a US Airways flight that brought it down, worsens the case for commercial UAV flights. One thing's for sure, the FAA is taking a 'preventive' stance of ensuring no passenger flights are in danger rather than repeatedly listening to a black box of a crashed plane.

The FAA may sound like a party-pooper, but so far it has done a good job of keeping U.S. airspace safe amid the complex nature of the current airspace system. in fact, there had been reports of 'could-have-been' collisions between drones and commercial aircraft. In Canada, a drone malfunctioned while filming a movie scene and dropped from the Vancouver sky.

The Flipside: Benefits of Drone Flights

It would be an understatement to say that the FAA's arguments against commercial drone flights is legitimate. No one wants a drone dropping off the sky damaging private property, or worse, causing the death of an innocent bystander.

However, we cannot also deny the positive benefits UAV flights offer. Drones used for commercial purposes open up myriad possibilities -- it can assist law enforcement agencies in search and rescue missions especially in terrains that are difficult to scout. It would be much easier to locate a hypothetical loved one lost in the woods than using search dogs smelling foot and scent tracks.

It would not come as a surprise if we see individual lobbying efforts that seek exemptions from FAA's rigid rules. In fact, one report shows that the FAA approved for the first time when it allowed PumaAE, a small drone developed by AeroVironment , to fly over the Alaskan airspace.PumaAE is being used to create 3D road models and pipelines using its high-tech sensors.

Drones like PumaAE can be used fo a variety of purposes -- crop spraying, journalism, goods deliveries, filmmaking and so much more.

Weighing the pros and cons of commerical drone flights will take longer than expected. It is even hard to tell what their future looks like. For now it seems very unlikely that the drones we will see them flying above our heads for commercial usage. 

Tagsdrones, Commercial use of drones, illegal use of drones