August 2016 NewsBeat 7
be in contact with ATC is possible, but not
likely because air traffic radio is busy already
with manned aircraft. Or, this might just end
up as a web form at the airport's website, as is
the case in Tampa and Phoenix. The fact is, we
just don't know how permission in controlled
airspace will happen, and it will require local
effort to work through it.
Where:
I've touched on this, but it bears repeating.
Flight in Class B, C, D and E airspace will
require permission from ATC. What does that
mean? Well, those airspace designations will
be on the test, but the simplest thing to do if
you are in the United States is to go to
vfrmap.com. Do you see all those circles?
Those are airports with restricted airspace
around them. If the circle is a fuzzy purple,
then you don't need permission, you just have
to be smart and avoid the airport. Or, take a
look at the airspace around Lincoln, Neb. A
large chunk of the city is in Class C airspace,
which is common around the US. Only the
largest airports are Class B airspace (think:
Chicago, Atlanta, Minneapolis, Newark, etc).
Inside of five miles from the airport in Lincoln,
which includes my office, I'll need to get
permission. Anywhere around here, outside of
those five miles, I'm free to operate without ATC
clearance.
So the day we've been waiting for is here.
The news is reasonably good. There are still
challenges, and we haven't even talked about
state and local laws that have been piling up
while the FAA lumbered toward today. But the
future of drones in journalism is much brighter
today than it has ever been.
— Reprinted fromThe Drone Journalism Lab
(Photo by Amanda Hickman, BuzzFeed)
