The relatively recent introduction of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS, or “drones”) into the global aviation market has taken regulators, air traffic management organizations, and civil aviation professionals by surprise. The unique nature of the operations and potential uses of unmanned systems, which are derivative of their small sizes, extraordinary maneuverability, and unprecedented capability to perform tasks that manned aviation cannot duplicate, has placed increased burdens on airspace management strategies, policies, and technology. As the civil aviation community tries to adapt to this disruptive and potentially destructive technology, new paradigms in the ingrained and well‐tested methodology of integrating all types of aviation traffic into a seamless and safe system must be explored. Need for onboard and ground‐based surveillance equipment, autonomous “sense‐and‐avoid” sensor devices, new classes of airspace, UAS‐specific operational limitations, revised pilot qualifications, international harmonization of regulations, and regulatory responses to rapidly evolving technology is but a few of the ever‐changing challenges facing air traffic control organizations, airlines, commercial aviation operations, and private pilots. And perhaps the greatest threat to the safety of the users of the aviation system is the millions of small drones that have been sold over the last 2 years to nonaviators.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.