Within a year or two, U.S. companies likely will replace many human workers now flying aerial survey and photo missions or inspecting structures from scaffolds and platforms with missions flown by unmanned aerial vehicles—drones. While the equipment already is available, most firms are holding back until federal authorities issue regulations to govern unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) use.
The regulations are eagerly awaited by scanning equipment manufacturers, survey firms and contractors that are itching to launch. The rules are being developed at the direction of Congress, which told the Federal Aviation Administration in 2012 to integrate commercial unmanned flights into the national airspace by September 2015.