Commercial drones coming to skies near you!

Applied Technology Institute (ATI Courses) offers the following courses on Unmanned Aircraft Technology:

Unmanned Aircraft Systems-Sensing, Payloads & Products	Sep 15-18, 2014	Dayton, OH
Unmanned Aircraft Systems-Sensing, Payloads & Products	Nov 3-6, 2014	Columbia, MD
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Guidance & Control	On Site	Your Facility
Unmanned Air Vehicle Design	Nov 11-13, 2014	Dayton, OH
Unmanned Air Vehicle Design	Feb 17-19, 2015	Columbia, MD
Unmanned Aircraft System Fundamentals	Feb 24-26, 2015	Columbia, MD

The news below should be of interest to our readers. Although drones seem to be in wide use elsewhere, the Federal Aviation Administration is nervous about letting U.S. skies fill up with them, citing safety and privacy concerns. The FAA already fined a photographer $10,000 for taking commercial pictures of a university by drone. It was overturned in court, but the FAA is appealing the decision. Meanwhile, real estate agents are having a field day, literally, flying drones over houses to show buyers a different perspective, ignoring the fact that this is against the law. Amazon head Jeff Bezos says he foresees the day when an Amazon order is delivered in 30 minutes by drone. Up in the sky! It’s a bird. It’s a plane. No, it’s the “Divergent” series from Amazon. He has teamed up with three drone manufacturers to lobby for government permission. Those less-than-reputable journalists who try to invade private weddings, bar mitzvahs and celebrity birthday parties would love to use drones anywhere they want to get pictures. Film producers see great potential in using drones to get aerial shots with far less cost and risk. Not so fast, say U. S. regulators, including the FAA and Department of Transportation.  Congress wants regulations ready by September 2015. But nobody expects that deadline to be met. Canada, Australia, Japan and the United Kingdom are far ahead of the U.S. in commercial drone use. While American hobbyists fly drones (not near airports or higher than 400 feet), most Americans seem to be leery of weird unidentified objects buzzing over their heads. Read more here. What is your opinion on this issue?  Please comment below.