The FAA has now issued a new Interim
Final Rule on February 13, 2019, which revises the small unmanned aircraft
marking requirement. The new Interim Final Rule becomes effective February 25,
2019. See 84 FR 3669 (February 13, 2019) (“2019 Interim Final Rule”). The FAA now requires that the registration
number be marked on the exterior of the aircraft. The FAA is taking this action
in the 2019 Interim Final Rule to address concerns expressed by the law enforcement
community and the FAA’s interagency security partners regarding the risk that a
concealed explosive device poses to first responders who must open a
compartment to find the small unmanned aircraft’s registration number.
As background, the FAA observed that in the interim
final rule titled “Registration and Marking Requirements for Small Unmanned
Aircraft” (Registration IFR), the agency provided a web-based aircraft registration process
for the registration of small unmanned aircraft to facilitate compliance with
the statutory requirement that all aircraft register prior to operation. See 80
FR 78593 (December 16, 2015). The Registration IFR also required that the
FAA-issued number assigned during the registration process be affixed or marked
on the small unmanned aircraft. To grant flexibility to the diverse types of
small unmanned aircraft commercially available, the FAA required that the
registration number marking be readily accessible and maintained in a condition
that is readable and legible upon close visual inspection. The IFR further
explained that markings in an enclosed compartment, such as a battery
compartment, will be considered readily accessible if they can be accessed
without the use of tools. See 80 FR at 78627-28.
As the FAA noted, after the 2015
Registration IFR became effective, the law enforcement community and FAA’s
interagency security partners highlighted the risk to first responders when
registration numbers are permitted to be concealed. To address this safety and security
risk, the FAA is amending 14 CFR 48.205(c) to require the registration number
be displayed and visible on an external surface of the small unmanned aircraft.
The FAA indicated in the 2019 Interim Final Rule that the agency has determined
that the importance of mitigating the risk to first responders outweighs the
previously discussed aesthetic interests and justifies the minimal burden and
inconvenience this change could impose on small unmanned aircraft owners. Consequently, small unmanned aircraft owners
are no longer permitted to enclose the FAA-issued registration number in a
compartment.
Comments may be submitted by the public
in this proceeding on or before March 15, 2019.
Comments may be submitted
electronically following the instructions in the link here:
