Gov. Mike DeWine, along with several other senior Ohio and military officials, announced Friday that Springfield-Beckley Municipal Airport would be the test site for a new and revolutionary aviation system. DeWine was joined in his announcement by Lt. Gov. Jon Husted, and Major General William Cooley, Commander of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) at Wright Patterson Air Force Base. The new system will be run and overseen by the Ohio Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Center and AFRL. A press release from DeWine’s office described the new technology as follows: This month, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed that new technology developed in collaboration between AFRL and the State of Ohio – called SkyVision – safely, accurately, and effectively allows unmanned aircraft systems (UAS or “drones”) to detect and avoid other aircraft while in flight. Simply put, SkyVision can be described as an air traffic control system for drones. The main point of concern is that, per FAA rules, no individual or organization can operate a drone in the U.S. outside of the line of sight of the user. This study will test drones well outside of the line of sight of the user, but still within a 200-mile radius. “As…
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