Leadership From the Cockpit

3 Results for Tag ALP-From The Hill

Continuing to Advance Safe UAS Integration

Published on March 23, 2016

By Capt. Tim Canoll

Earlier this month, I testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship on the need to fully regulate all uses of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS).

During this hearing, additional testimony provided by the Mercatus Center at George Mason University cited a recently published report alleging that the “small UAS under 2 kg pose a negligible risk to the safety of the national airspace.”

ALPA takes exception to these conclusions about the extremely low risk of collision. The report’s statistics were built by evaluating the historical number of wildlife strikes and damage caused throughout the past 25 years. Comparing a small machine, often comprised of metal parts, to a bird provides no reasonable correlation. Aircraft engines have been tested against birds and designed to withstand a certain level of ingestion. To date, no such tests have been conducted with UAS. Based on a lack of research and testing data, it is presumptuous to correlate UAS and bird strikes.

Categories: Advocacy, Pilot Partisan

Tags: ALP-From The Hill, Unmanned Air Systems

Keeping the Spotlight on UAS Safety

Published on October 28, 2015

Earlier today, I testified before the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee's Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Subcommittee and discussed the urgent need to address all aspects of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) operations in order to protect the safety of the U.S. national airspace system.

This was the second time this month that ALPA was called to Capitol Hill regarding this important issue, allowing us the opportunity to reiterate the importance for Congress to direct the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to regulate all operations of UAS, including recreational and hobby use.

While ALPA supports advancing America’s competitiveness through the use of UAS, safety is paramount. Recently, we launched a four-part action plan to safely integrate UAS with focused efforts on education, registration, technology, and penalties, and enforcement.

Categories: Advocacy, Testimony

Tags: ALP-From The Hill, Unmanned Air Systems