Over the past 24 months, it has become clear that our approach to public safety and security from the “air domain” lacks the attention and support needed to secure public space.
Although there is a tremendous ongoing effort by a select few of our legislators to address the technological advances in commercial drone platforms, it is still not enough. The reality of the current law dates to 2018, a time far removed from the technical maturity and innovations of the drone market today.
Recent predictions have the drone market growing substantially over the next several years, and sUAS producers are in a heated competition to bring the next feature or capability to the market. Additionally, events around the globe concerning drone incidents and use cases continue to show the agility and creativity of how the platform can be used and the risks associated with being asleep at the wheel.
Furthermore, if you look at how current legislation is structured, it clearly shows the focus on the centralization of authority for mitigation at the government level.
There are provisions in the 2018 bill (the bill currently in effect) that give federal entities the authority to protect and counter sUAS events, but these authorities are narrowly defined and focus on critical infrastructure, DOD and special events.
The current law does very little to address the real need: public events and venues. These are the places the public gathers in mass, are the most vulnerable, and should be considered a priority. Security professionals can no longer avoid this new dimension of the physical security program. The “air domain” is now a major consideration, and business owners should take note.
Let’s recap how this market is organized into various sectors. In general, the sUAS market consists of the following compartmentalized pillars.
Continue reading: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbes...egislation-where-do-we-stand/?sh=249e0bb8553a