If you are planning on giving a drone to someone for Christmas, beware the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) now requires any drone that weighs more then a half a pound to be registered.
The FAA and Department of Transportation (DOT) announced the new rules on Monday that essentially all drone owners have to register their drones in a national database.The new rules cover all drones and they have to be registered by February 19, 2016. What that means is the majority of Christmas presents will be affected.
Anyone caught flying a drone without proper registration after that date could be fined. The FAA said the civil penalties include a fine of up to $27,500. Criminal penalties include a fine of up to $250,000 and up to three years in jail as reported by MSN.
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The registration will usually include a $5 fee but the FAA announced they are waiving that for the first 30 days in an effort to encourage participation. It was noted:
Registration begins on December 21st but you can start the process now.registrants will need to provide their name, home address and e-mail address. Upon completion of the registration process, the web application will generate a Certificate of Aircraft Registration/Proof of Ownership that will include a unique identification number for the UAS owner, which must be marked on the aircraft.
US Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx said:
Make no mistake: unmanned aircraft enthusiast are aviators, and with that title comes a great deal of responsibility.
Registration gives us an opportunity to work with these users to operate their unmanned aircraft safely. I’m excited to welcome these new aviators into the culture of safety and responsibility that defines American innovation.
