This week’s “Around the Commercial Drone Industry” news round-up looks at an FAA waiver for NYPD’s drones, how a drone operator in Colorado was fined for harassing homeless populations, and how test hubs are expanding the drone industry in Rwanda and Kenya.

UAV Test Hubs in Rwanda and Kenya

The United Nations posted a review of commercial drone activity in Africa, stating that UAVs are revolutionizing internet connectivity, disaster response, agriculture, and surveillance in Africa “at a cheaper cost.” Central to this revolution is the emergence of “test hubs” for uncrewed aircraft in Rwanda and Kenya. In Rwanda, for example, drone maker Zipline has partnered with the Rwandan government “to establish new drone delivery sites across the country, which are now being used to deliver healthcare supplies to hospitals.” Meanwhile, “Airbus subsidiary AALTO announced in December 2023 plans to debut a first-of-its-kind drone airport, named AALTO Port, in Laikipia, Kenya, to be used to test the operation of their high-altitude drone known as 'Zephyr'."

Remote Police Drone Launch in NYC

New York’s WABC reports that the NYPD has received permission from the FAA to remotely launch its drones “across three boroughs and five different precincts.” With the FAA waiver, “the NYPD will be the first department in the nation with permission to launch drones remotely from a centralized point, 1 Police Plaza, toward certain locations, including Central Park.” According to the report, New York’s 10 newest drones “will respond to calls including searches for missing people, alerts from the ShotSpotter gunshot detection system, incidents of robberies and grand larcenies, and other crimes in progress as needed.” Also, “Pilots at police headquarters will be able to pilot and track drones in real time inside the ‘flight room,’ beating officers on the ground.”

Pilot Fined for Harassing the Homeless

Highlighting issues of privacy and provocation concerning drones, Colorado’s Pueblo Chieftain published a piece detailing how a Pueblo real estate developer “made dozens of viral social media videos of drones harassing local unhoused people” in violation of FAA regulations. According to the report, the developer flew drones over “unhoused people in Pueblo by flying up to and at times over them to film their reactions, seemingly for comedic effect.” A penalty letter from the FAA said, "it appears" Borunda violated 11 FAA regulations a total of 232 times. As a result, Borunda was hit with a $270,000 fine in September.