While it may seem counter-intuitive, airports might just be one of the safest places for drones to fly; that is, with the caveat that drone flight in the unregulated airspace around the airports is clearly not safe and not permitted. Otherwise, drones can serve as a powerful tool to improve the safety, efficiency and cost-effectiveness of U.S. airport operations in years ahead. How? Well, drones can execute critical tasks such as foreign object debris inspections, security flyovers, fuselage inspections, wildlife detection (or deterrence) and more. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) already works with U.S. airports and tower personnel to ground planes and put airports on lock down to carry out critical tasks (e.g., de-icing or debris removal). If the FAA shuts down operations at an airport, drones can certainly help carry out some of these tasks with the help of trained, monitored and authorized drone operators. And, as technology continues to evolve, drones may offer even greater potential to U.S. airports. For example, a drone with advanced debris-detection sensors might be able to execute debris removal with much greater accuracy in less time than multiple employees with multiple vehicles; a drone with night vision technology could spot a trespasser on airport property and record the evidence for later use. This will be yet another area to watch as drones see more and more uses across more and more industries.

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