How the FAA will integrate rockets, drones and flying cars into our skies

Established airspace has facilitated space travel for decades. Drones and flying cars, not so long.

The FAA, NASA and the Army have been working on rocket development for decades. Large military drones have been used for more than a decade to provide remote strike capability for military operations. Small unmanned aerial systems became prevalent around 2012. Flying cars have existed for decades, but only in cartoons. Today, they really exist.

Travelers United has worked with these new technologies since 2012. Our organization has kept pace with changes in the US space program which is now a major industry. Just 15 years ago no one would have thought that rockets would take off and land for reuse. Drones were considered flying toys until FedEx, UPS, Amazon and Google started introducing them to delivery, survey and inspection tasks. And flying taxis were only imaginary. Today, they all exist.

The development of flight could proceed rapidly. Integration of technology takes time, planning and integrated regulation.

Flight and space technology has been developing for dozens of years. Now it is moving faster than even futurists could imagine. America’s industry, NASA and the FAA, which are working intensively on space operations, drone deployment and flying car development, discussed the full use of our national airspace at recent Air Traffic Control Association (ATCA) meetings. They’re exploring space, integrating drones, and figuring out how to put VTOL (electric vertical take-off and landing) taxis into operation. Within a dozen years, these new entrants to our national airspace (NAS) will be flying back and forth in space and providing observation and delivery systems at altitudes less than 400 feet.

At the last Air Traffic Controllers trade show, there was heavy discussion of where the unmanned and space programs are going. He has been lying dead in the water for the last eight years. Yes, NASA is working on unmanned air management programs, but the FAA is doing its best to study unmanned systems. Unfortunately, bureaucracy will hinder the development of unmanned systems and future space missions.

Our skies will host more than just airplanes. Rockets, drones and flying cars will also share the wild blue color.

Until recently, we have not had to share our skies with anything other than commercial and private aviation. According to Statista, approximately 200,000 aircraft are registered. However, millions of UAS and drones need to be integrated into a NAS. There will be more soon. The FAA has created an air traffic control system that works for commercial and private aviation. However, this does not serve rapid space development or the increase in low-flying unmanned aerial systems. Technology is not slowing down. The Ukraine/Russian war is accelerating the development of unmanned vehicles.

The number of rockets, drones and flying cars is increasing rapidly. By the end of this decade, more satellites will be launched by any single American space firm than have been launched in the world since Sputnik. Millions more drones will inspect rooftops, telephone lines, cattle fences, farms and skyscrapers. Also, flying cars and taxis can start filling the air.

Today, the FAA is focused on getting new regulations to allow UAS operations over people. In the past regulations were designed almost as outright rules for specific air platforms. Today, regulations have to work for the millions of operational drones – they have to be performance-based. Security related information should be shared. Economic barriers to unmanned aviation must be overcome. NASA is working on unmanned traffic control, which should work with the manned air traffic control systems that operate commercial aviation.

Our U.S. Space Force researchers are preparing to create rules allowing rocket cargo to take off and land internationally. Colonel Horn, Deputy Director, Operations, Patrick Space Force Base, FL, also said, “These changes give entrepreneurs the confidence to dare change. At the same time, it provides a framework for increased investment and maintenance of space platforms and service satellites. Both are only distant thoughts today.

Panels discussed changes in the world and how fast they move.

Twelve years ago, much of today’s UAS and eVTOL reality was a dream. If we look at pictures of New York City in 1903, the streets were full of horses. Twelve years later, the same roads were filled with cars. Within 25 years almost the entire world adopted cell phones. But it took 120 years for the telephone to enter the world before the mobile phone. The DOD, FAA, and private industry are all working to make the transition more accessible and faster. However, reality is overtaking the bureaucracy.

Some technologies are not advancing as quickly as some industries would like. Radio spectrum is limited. That limitation has already caused problems with command and control of airplanes and 5G telephones. Those issues have slowed the implementation of major telecommunications programs. However, spectrum questions may also limit changes in the UAS world.

Unfortunately, the FAA is not organized to deal with the new world of space and UAVs. We will need new specialized organizations.

Ultimately we will have different organizations controlling space programs and airspace above 50,000 feet. Low-level UAV operations at altitudes of 400 to 500 feet will require a separate organization. There will be far more UAVs in the air, overwhelming the FAA’s already existing controls over business, consumer and cargo aircraft. It would be difficult enough to manage each level of air/space traffic control, let alone the areas where they intersect.

The message from recent space and UAV-focused conferences is that collaboration will be needed to advance the rapidly growing industries that will soon fill our skies. It is needed today. Commercial aviation companies, such as airlines, have been operating for years and have an established air traffic control system. However, the world of UAS and drones has only been in existence for about a dozen years. There are many rules to draft and other challenges to overcome before the skies and space can truly be opened up for development. However, that time is near. America must be ready for change.

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