Feds to require drone owners to register

The Obama administration, faced with a surge in unauthorised drone flights, will announce a new initiative on Monday aimed at registering the owners of unmanned aerial systems (UAS), people familiar with the matter said on Friday.

The recommendations are due by November 20, and administration officials hope to have the registry in place before Christmas, when they say that more than 1 million new drones could be given as gifts to new untrained operators.

Drone industry representatives welcomed the notion of having a mechanism to promote accountability, but questioned whether a new registry could be in place in such a short timeframe and said the government’s authority to compel participation remained unclear.

The announcement is expected to be made by USA treasury secretary Anthony Foxx and Michael Huerta, administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, at a news conference attended by members of the drone industry.

Their duties reportedly include the creation of a policy that requires anyone who buys a drone to register with the department.

Toys and small drones that don’t present a safety threat are likely to be exempt.

“It’s going to be a very hard task to do by November 20”. The Consumer Electronics Association has forecast that 700,000 drones will be sold this holiday season, and Foxx said it’s especially important that new drone users be taught the responsibilities that come with flying.

It’s not known how much information hobbyist drone pilots will have to submit, or whether those who already have drones will be required to register details, too. So far there have been no accidents, but agency officials have said they are concerned that even a drone weighing only a few pounds might cause serious damage if it is sucked into an engine or smashes into an airliner’s windshield.

In September, a drone crashed into the University of Kentucky’s Commonwealth Stadium.

If you own a drone, you may have to let the federal government know about it.