FAA Must Take Action on Hobby Drone Dangers: Managing Partner Mike Slack Authors Law360 Article

On December 4, 2019, a KABC AIR7 HD chopper made an unplanned landing after it was struck by a drone while flying over Downtown Los Angeles. While the impact did not affect the helicopter’s ability to fly, it resulted in visible physical damage to the helicopter. In his Law360 article, “FAA Must Take Action on Hobby Drone Dangers,” Managing Partner Mike Slack weighs in on the lack of regulations around drones and the issues this presents when accidents or injuries occur.

“The problems with hobby drones flying illegally around airports, over crowds and at altitudes used by manned aircraft most commonly occur in urban areas. The consequences of dealing with drone mischief are shouldered by local authorities, not the FAA. Despite having the authority to regulate the operational rules for hobby drones, the FAA has no system in place to effectively monitor, detect and prevent hobby drone problems before they occur,” wrote Slack.

The FAA didn’t implement drone regulations until 2015, and there’s currently no federal regulations in place to hold drone owners accountable as the dangers of hobby drones continue to escalate. Slack also points out that dangers associated with drones in urban areas are increasing faster than solutions are being crafted to deal with the problems.

Read the Law360 article here. (Subscriber-view only)

FB/LI: Mike Slack authored an article for Law360 on the dangers and lack of regulations around hobby drones, following the collision of a drone and a KABC news helicopter in December. [LINK]

Twitter: Mike Slack authored an article for @Law360 on the dangers and lack of regulations around hobby drones, following the collision of a drone and a KABC news #helicopter in December. #LosAngeles [LINK]