ORIGINAL: Silent-AV8R



I can assure you that they have been doing do for far longer. As far back as 1999 or 2000 I know that the local FAA folks in SOCAL were very aware of model airplanes, and had a surprising knowledge of their capabilities.

As far as enforce actions go, I have personal knowledge of three situations where the FAA has been involved with applying AC 91-57 as the standard for model operations.

Prado Regional Park (PVMAC), El Dorado Park (EDSF), and Fairview Park (Harbor Soaring Society). All os these are in SOCAL. In all three places they are close enough to local airports that the FAA took notice and requested that the local agencies that operated the park have the modelers hold to the 400 foot limit stated in AC 91-57. Did the FAA arrest or cite people? No. But what they did do was render an opinion to the City/County agencies that own the various sites that the models need to operate in accordance with AC 91-57. Those local agencies then enforced the limits stated in AC 91-57.

I agree that in places here there is little or no chance of a conflict with full size planes the FAA is very unlikely to even notice, but in places where that potential exists I think the FAA has clearly demonstrated that they WILL get involved.

As far as the topic of this post, I see it as the next step in what they are already doing. So far their position has been that if you operate in accordance with AC 91-57, you are a model airplane. If not, then you will be subject to various regulations, some of which they are still forming. So for the vast majority of us I think we can rest easy. This is really aimed at commercial ventures and so on. I recall one FAA person a few years back telling us that at that time the Global Hawk could launch, fly at 40,000 feet across the Pacific and never once be subject to normal aviation rules. The FAA wanted to change that. And that type of operation is what this is all about.