About this episode
“Drone lawyer” Jonathan Rupprecht talks about current legal cases that will have major implications for model airplane enthusiasts and sUAS operators. Guest Jonathan Rupprecht is a commercial pilot with single and multi-engine aircraft ratings and also a flight instructor. He has a Bachelor of Science in Professional Aeronautics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, and his law degree from Florida International University School of Law. Rupprecht Law provides legal services for operators of unmanned aerial vehicles. Jonathan authored the book Drones: Their Many Civilian Uses and the U.S. Laws Surrounding Them , Drone Operator’s Logbook , and he co-authored Unmanned Aircraft in the National Airspace: Critical Issues. Technology, and the Law . Our discussion with Jonathan includes: The FAA’s interpretation of the Special Rule for Model Aircraft in the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012. Can the FAA regulate model aircraft? The boundaries of navigable airspace: Down to the ground or something higher? This impacts the notion of trespass by drone, privacy, and federal versus local jurisdiction to regulate. The Special Flight Rules Area (SFRA) around Washington D.C. and its impact on those who fly model aircraft and UAS. News Area 51 Bans Drones… Your Drones, At Least Area 51 is now posted as a no drone zone. Video of the Week Safely Travel Deep Inside a Glacier Through the Eyes of a Drone Flyability partnered with the team from Zermatt Mountain Rescue in the Swiss Alps to explore glacial crevasses.