Sky's the limit

COEUR d'ALENE - Unmanned aerial systems - drones - are not just a threat to people's privacy or weapons to fight terrorists.

They have safe, commercial applications that can create jobs and make Idaho's economy stronger and more diverse and businesses more efficient.

That was the message at Wednesday's Idaho - Advancing Aviation Manufacturing Expo and Conference at the Best Western Plus Coeur d'Alene Inn.

"Everything we talk about in unmanned aircraft systems has to do with Predators and Reapers and the bad Taliban guy getting smacked by a bomb," said Steven Edgar, president and CEO of Advanced Aviation Solutions.

Idaho has a lot of room to expand its production and export of agricultural products, and unmanned aerial systems can help. That's just one field of application, though it's a major one, he said.

The technology can improve forestry, fish-and-wildlife management, firefighting and search and rescue operations.

Edgar is an aerial combat veteran from the 1991 Gulf War, where he flew the F-117A Stealth Fighter and has amassed more than 10,000 flight hours in his career. He has flown and instructed in nearly 20 types of commercial and military aircraft, as well as the RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aircraft system in support of combat troops in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya.

Major commercial use of unmanned aerial systems is just around the corner.

"Right now, I could fly a 747 unmanned from Boise, Idaho, to Beijing," Edgar said.

Eric Folkestad, president of the Cascade Chapter of the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International, said the U.S. has a 10-year head start on development of the technology compared with the rest of the world.

"Every bad country wants to get their hands on this technology, because it works," he said. "We're even 10 years ahead of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), that's where we're selling these planes right now."

It takes seven years and millions of dollars to develop one of these aircraft, he said.

The U.S. can take advantage of its lead, economically, by applying it to commercial uses.

"China is desperately trying to catch up," Folkestad said.

In the next five years, the market will be $40 billion worldwide and $28 billion in the U.S.

Charlton Evans, program manager for commercial and civil unmanned aircraft systems for Insitu Inc., said expanded use of the aircraft is on the horizon.

The Federal Aviation Administration is considering ways to integrate the aircraft into the national airspace for commercial work.

"I expect what will happen first is access to airspace will be granted in a formalized way for emergency responders," Evans said.

Idaho Lt. Gov. Brad Little, one of the conference's opening speakers, said the Idaho Legislature had a robust debate about privacy and unmanned vehicles during the 2013 legislative session.

"There's no question that it's an evolving industry and there's a lot of evolving rules and regulations," Little said. "What took place in Idaho is, we passed laws that regulated and tried to put the sideboards on there and didn't let somebody else define the environment going forward."

He said it's important for the industry to address the subject.

Edgar said misuse of data that is collected should be more of a concern than how data is collected.

"Whether it's manned or unmanned, it doesn't matter," he said.

He pointed out that people are being video recorded at intersections, parking lots, sidewalks and buildings. Personal information is being gathered constantly.

He said the use or management of collected data is where legislators need to focus their energy.

The conference and expo was organized by American Manufacturers Network, based in Lewiston.

Bob Didocha, general manager of the network, said members of the manufacturing and airline industries, education community, government agencies, and curious members of the public attended the event. It was the first conference and roughly 100 people registered.