Drone registration is over, for now. The FAA was challenged in court and lost.
The Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA) said this in response to this ruling, “A Federal appeals court struck down the FAA’s registration requirement for recreational model aircraft. The court ruling is effective immediately. As such, if you have not registered with the FAA, you are no longer required under the law to do so. For those of you who have already registered with the FAA, you may be wondering what this means for you. We are currently working to obtain answers from the FAA and will share more information as it becomes available.
Please keep in mind that this is a fluid situation and there is always the possibility of a renewed push in Congress to compel federal registration for model aircraft. If that happens, rest assured that AMA will continue to advocate for your interests and keep you well informed every step of the way. We have repeatedly argued that federal registration for our community is duplicative and unnecessary, as our members already register their model aircraft with AMA. In addition, our 80-year history of safe and responsible flying demonstrates that we’re not the problem. We shouldn’t be burdened by overly broad regulations.”
What this means for now that you do not have to register with the FAA yourself no matter if you have a quadcopter (drone) that had met the minimum weight limit to register. This does not mean that the courts in some future ruling might change its mind or that some new rules might come into being.
The court ruling has nothing to do with the safety rules that must be followed nor does it change the rules for those flying quadcopters for commercial purposes. And it most certainly does not mean that you should assume that no one can tell you how to fly your quadcopter!
One of the big problems is those who fly in an unsafe manner and those bad flying habits could cost all of us our ability to fly our quadcopters. So it is a good idea to follow the guidelines listed in the FAA’s Know before you fly website. Lets not make things worse by doing something stupid that cause all us the ability to enjoy this hobby.
That is my opinion- Jumpin Jersey Mike
