On June 21, 2016, the FAA issued its long-awaited regulations
governing "Small Unmanned Aircraft," or drone
operation. The regulations allow the use of drones weighing
less than 55 pounds, traveling less than 100 mph groundspeed, and
up to 400 feet above the ground, for a wide variety of purposes
during daylight hours. The regulations allow that a drone
may be operated only by "a remote pilot in command" who
has passed a written test, is vetted by the Transportation Security
Administration, and is at least 16 years old, or a person under his
or her direct supervision. In addition, the drone must
remain within visual line-of-flight, and flights over people or
within five miles of an airport are prohibited. The
regulations also contain a waiver mechanism to allow individual
operations to deviate from many of the operational restrictions of
these regulations if the proposed operation can safely be conducted
under the terms of a certificate of waiver. At 624
