Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
FAA Issues 76 Waivers as Part 107 Drone Rule Takes Effect
Most of the waivers granted to the Part 107 operating conditions involve night-time flights, said FAA Administrator Michael Huerta.
Left to right: AUVSI CEO Brian Wynne, FAA Administrator Michael Huerta and Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx addressed unmanned aircraft rules at DOT headquarters. (Photo: Bill Carey)
Left to right: AUVSI CEO Brian Wynne, FAA Administrator Michael Huerta and Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx addressed unmanned aircraft rules at DOT headquarters. (Photo: Bill Carey)

The Federal Aviation Administration granted 76 waivers to its new Part 107 regulation on August 29, the effective date of its rule governing the commercial use of small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) weighing less than 55 pounds. Those waivers—allowing exceptions to the regulation’s operating conditions—mostly involve flying at night, said FAA Administrator Michael Huerta.

During a briefing at the U.S. Department of Transportation headquarters in Washington, D.C., Huerta and Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx marked the first official day of the Part 107 rule, which the FAA released in final form on June 21 after a decade or more in development. Brian Wynne, president and CEO of the Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), accompanied them on stage.

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