The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) released yesterday for public review and comment a working draft of the Standardization Roadmap for Unmanned Aircraft Systems. The Institute’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems Standardization Collaborative (UASSC) is developing the document. Starting in September 2019, working groups have been developing the draft for several months, now.

Chapter 5 of the document provides an overview of selected UAS industry stakeholder activities. Hence, the roadmap includes a section about AW-Drones. For example, it describes our standards collection and assessment work, and the subsequent expected outcomes.

This release specifically invites comments that represent critical revisions or needed clarifications on the draft roadmap. Submit your comments to uassc@ansi.org by close of business on Friday, May 1, 2020. You can download the draft roadmap and related materials as follows:

Meet the UASSC

The UASSC’s mission is to coordinate and accelerate the development of the standards and conformity assessment programs needed to facilitate the safe integration of UAS, or drones, into the national airspace system, with international coordination and adaptability. In order to do so, the roadmap identifies existing standards and standards in development, defines existing gaps, and recommends additional work if needed. It also includes a timeline for its completion and organizations that can perform the work. As a result, the document means to help clarify the current standardization landscape, minimize duplication of effort among standards development organizations (SDOs), help inform standards participation, and facilitate the growth of the UAS market.

Currently, the UASSC working groups are on hiatus and will reconvene in May. Then, they will address the comments received and finalize the roadmap for publication by the end of June. For more information, visit www.ansi.org/uassc.