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Integrating unmanned aerial system operations into the Dallas/Fort Worth airport environment
Journal of Airport Management,
13
(3),
206-214
(2019)
Abstract
Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) was one of the first airports in the USA to receive Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approval to fly small unmanned aerial system (sUAS) aircraft in highly restricted Class B airspace. To date, almost 100 public and commercial flights have been flown at DFW in support of law enforcement activities, fire safety, airport construction and private industry videography. The path to FAA issuance of sUAS certificates of authorization (COA) was paved by a concerted effort among a broad cross-section of aviation professionals with an interest in integrating UAS operations into the DFW environment. The DFW UAS Work Group worked diligently on many aspects of sUAS operations, ranging from COA application to UAS education to flight procedures development. Collaboration between airport representatives and various entities within the FAA resulted in an executed letter of agreement that supports public and commercial sUAS flights over airport property. This paper describes the methodology applied by the work group that led to successful sUAS flight operations. The paper also identifies barriers encountered and the processes applied to mitigate those issues. The author and the DFW UAS Work Group would like to share information that would hopefully assist other airports in developing a sUAS flight programme.
Keywords: airspace jurisdiction; authorised sUAS flights; collaborative effort; letter of agreement; LAANC; drone detection
The full article is available to subscribers to the journal.
Author's Biography
Paul Sichko is Vice President — Operations at Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) International Airport. Paul joined the DFW team in June of 2016. He was previously at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP), where over a 27-year tenure he held several positions within the MSP operations division. His areas of responsibility at DFW include airfield Safety and Certification, the Airport Operations Center and Corporate Aviation services. He is the chairperson of the DFW Unmanned Aerial Systems Work Group, a team of over 50 professionals who bring to the table operational and regulatory expertise from a broad cross-section of the airport, airline and governmental agencies. Paul began his aviation career as an air traffic controller with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Upon graduating from the FAA Academy, he was assigned to the Minneapolis-St. Paul Tower and Terminal Radar Approach Control facility. He is the recipient of an FAA National Save of the Year award and an FAA Partnership Award. Paul has served on numerous regional and national aviation safety committees. He was a member of the Takeoff and Landing Performance Assessment Aviation Rulemaking Committee team that created the Runway Condition Assessment Matrix (RCAM). The RCAM is at the core of the International Civil Aviation Organization Global Reporting Format, which will be instituted as a worldwide runway condition reporting standard in November 2020. Paul holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Aviation Administration from Augustana University, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, USA.
