UASidekick, one of only 4 FAA-approved B4UFly App providers, will be the first to provide this free capability to first responders on its UASideKick App.
Trend #3 – Enhanced Permissions
The FAA has leaned forward in multiple efforts to further empower DFR programs, DIB solutions and other drone-enabled missions for public safety, from the First Responder Tactical Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) Waiver to the Part 107 Obstruction Shielding Ops Waiver. Now, the agency, working with industry partners, plans to provide a new digital form to expedite DFR Special Government Interest (SGI) requests for Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFR).
Kerry Fleming, Manager of the FAA’s System Operations Support Center (SOSC), explained that TFRs, which essentially shut down swaths of airspace, currently cause issues with DFR’s ability to dynamically respond to 911 calls. This year’s planned political conventions and candidate travel will only exacerbate the problem. Recognizing this, Fleming and his team developed an SGI form specifically for DFR, the ‘DFR SGI for TFR.’” This form will be connected to the B4UFly App, which already has Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability (LAANC) approval capabilities and will allow for the FAA to rapidly provide SGI approvals in a digital format.
Current SGI processes require first responders to call into the SOSC and talk to the agents. Fleming explained, “Now, you won’t have to call. You can push a few buttons and the FAA will get the request instantaneously. We are already fast – under 10 mins. This might bring us down to 2 minutes.”
Fleming revealed that a key government agency “already gave it their blessing,” and that this new process will be available, upon final formal coordination.
UASidekick, one of only 4 FAA-approved B4UFly App providers, will be the first to provide this free capability to first responders on its UASideKick App. Nathan Ruff, Founder of UASidekick and EVP AirWise Solutions (an affiliate company and partner on this initiative) said,“Our goal is to provide public safety professionals quick and easy access to the National Airspace System. Leveraging touchscreen maps and digitization eliminates the need to calculate lats and longs, or fill out paper-based requests, saving valuable time in emergency situations. Digital SGIs take the administrative burden off our public safety professionals so they can focus on their real mission of helping people and saving lives.”
Phil Mann, the company’s co-founder and SVP added, “We’re excited and pleased to provide public safety with the easy button for getting SGIs and being able to fly in the air space they need, when they need it.”
Top 5 Trends in Public Safety Drone Operations | Commercial UAV News
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