2008 Annual Report - NASA Airborne Science Program

Interagency UAS
Coordination
As the use of Unmanned Aircraft
Systems (UAS) for science
missions becomes more
prevalent within our program,
the need for general access
to the national airspace system (NAS) has
become of utmost importance. Earlier this
year, Brenda Mulac from the Airborne Science
Program was placed within the Federal
Aviation Administration (FAA) Unmanned
Aircraft Program Office (UAPO) to act as a
liaison between the two agencies, and help
NASA’s UAS missions gain access to the
NAS more efficiently. The primary objective
of her liaison position has been to foster
a stronger relationship with the FAA by
facilitating communications and coordination
between the two agencies. The improvement
of communications is an effort not only to
assist the FAA with understanding the needs
of NASA UAS missions, but to also provide
NASA UAS mission personnel and scientists
with an understanding of FAA processes and
requirements.
To better represent the NASA mission and
science personnel at the FAA, the liaison
has visited several NASA centers to gain
an understanding of what UAS projects
are ongoing in the agency, as well as to
meet with scientists and other interested
parties to discuss their mission interests and
requirements. Having a working knowledge
54
of the different current and potential UAS
projects has allowed the liaison to work
more efficiently with the FAA to obtain
approved COAs, as well as understand the
impacts of potential changes in FAA policy
and guidance on NASA’s UAS missions.
Certificates of Authorization (COAs)
Currently, the only way to gain access
to the NAS is to apply to the FAA for a
Certificate of Authorization (COA). The
process to obtain a COA is time consuming,
potentially delaying a mission if not handled
appropriately. In the past, the requirements
for a COA were not well understood by
NASA, and had resulted in incomplete
applications that required more time for the
FAA to process and approve. The addition of
a NASA contact within the FAA UAPO has
provided a much needed interface between
the FAA and NASA individuals and projects
applying for a COA for their UAS operations.
NASA COA applicants can call with
questions regarding application information
as well as status updates on applications
already submitted. The FAA personnel who
review the COA applications can contact the
liaison with questions concerning possible
operations. For upcoming missions, meetings
between the FAA program office and the
project personnel have been facilitated,
allowing potential issues to be identified and
discussed prior to the submittal of a COA