While drones have been used extensively by the military and small radio-controlled model
aircraft have been around for more than 50 years, advances in more complex vehicle controls and
imaging sensor capabilities are spurring public sector and commercial interest in unmanned
aircraft for a variety of purposes, including law enforcement, homeland security, aerial imaging,
and scientific research. FAA currently approves public entities (such as federal agencies, public
universities, and local police departments) to operate UAVs on a case-by-case basis, but growing
interest is making this approach increasingly untenable. Moreover, commercial users are seeking
authorization to fly drones, but so far FAA has only allowed test and demonstration flights by
manufacturers. FAA faces a number of challenges to address anticipated growth in demand for
civilian UAV operations and develop regulations governing the certification and operation of
unmanned aircraft systems in domestic airspace.