Ham's that use drones will have to get a certificate

^ turn the "coma" into a "semicoma"?

 

OK, given the OP is a youngster passing on something he overheard, and the FAA site itself is pretty vague, I suggest waiting for further conclusive information. Everything else is just conjecture and innuendo, silly fun as that may be.

 

Yes. He's trying to be helpful, and to some extant it has been because apparently not everyone was aware of this, or if they were, are not clear on how to get good information about it.

So thanks to the OP for the heads up.

And just hang in there through all the banter that goes on.

 

Well, it won't take "heavy" and it won't take "airliner." I was on a SAR mission a few years ago where we found a light twin upside down in a swamp with both the student pilot and the instructor dead. The NTSB report concluded (from DNA) that they had hit a Canada Goose at night and lost control of the damaged airplane. Average weight of these geese is around 9# and cruise speed of that airplane was around 190mph.

That's the real reason for regulation. These drones are toy-like, but potentially lethal. We keep electric golf carts off the freeways and we need to keep drones out airspace that is used by airplanes and helicopters. Hence, education, licensing, and methods to identify drones and owners.

 

I hope this comment is useful.

Historically, per FAA rules, ALL RC Aircraft operating in Class G airspace were given the green light to operate without a license below 400ft.

However, in 2015 someone landed a drone on the WH lawn, and Homeland Security went ballistic.
Couple that with insurgents in Iraq using RC models to drop bombs on troops, and you can see where this was going.
Initially, this started off just for heavy drones used for Commercial operations, but has expanded to include hobbyists.

The AMA has been trying to get the FAA to back off, but they have been fighting this for 4 years now.

Currently, whether you fly a foamy, a full sized scale gas model, an Heli, or a Drone, we will all be treated the same.
If it flies, and you control it from the ground, it is a UAV.

Here is what I see at the moment...

If your aircraft weighs more than 1/2 lb and less than 55 lbs, you need to register it.
If it is over 55 lbs you need to register it with a regular N tail number.
https://faadronezone.faa.gov/#/

Here is AC-91 dated 5/2019
https://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Advisory_Circular/AC_91-57B.pdf

 

Just for people's information, Class G airspace is defined as "uncontrolled." This is a little misleading; what it means is that Air Traffic Control is never involved with flights in Class G. It does not mean that no one flies there. In populated areas Class G typically ends at either 700 or 1200 feet above ground level. In the Western US, though, there is some much higher Class G.

Here is the punch line: Medevac choppers and float (pontoon) planes are often found in low level Class G. I'd guess that most medevac choppers routinely take off, travel, and land in Class G. A drone that tangled with a tail rotor would have a high chance of killing all aboard. So whether a license is required or not, judgment and care IS required.

 

Also, the FAA can close any airspace as required, usually for such things as national security, VIP protection (e.g., the POTUS), aerial fire fighting, disasters, etc. UAV pilots need to be aware of how to find such Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFR) in their area and avoid them.

TFRs are issued around most forest fires, yet it’s now common that some jackass flies a drone into the area to get video. This interrupts the firefighting efforts because the air tankers and spotter planes are grounded until the drone is gone.

 

I have never even considered owning a drone. Now I am thinking of buying one just to send up a crossband-repeating HT.

 

If you don't want to have a license, you need to hurry.

 

A lot of what I see in the media about drones looks to me like fancy R/C model aircraft.

 

Today in the ARRL Letter:

FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 Changes Recreational Drone Flying Requirements

http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter?issue=2019-07-11#toc03