Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (SUAS) and Manned Traffic near John Wayne Airport (KSNA) Spot Check of the SUAS Facility Map: Towards a New Paradigm for Drone Safety Near Airports

Peter J Burke

doi:10.3390/drones3040084

Abstract

Using data from an Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADSB) aggregator, a custom data-mining program was developed to identify all manned aircraft below 500′ AGL within 5 miles of the KSNA airport on six specific days in 2018–2019. The data (a spot check) show that several of the zero-foot grids are well outside of the traffic pattern, with no manned aircraft below 500′ AGL for at least a mile. Detailed maps showing all the traffic on those days are overlaid on the KSNA UAS facility map for comparison. This data-driven safety analysis is outlined as a new paradigm for drone safety near airports, which can be applied worldwide.

Highlights

The FAA unmanned aircraft system (UAS) facility maps (UASFM) are used as guidance for FAA airspace approval in controlled airspace for UAS operations [1]
The only obvious bias with the overall method is that general aviation is not required to carry Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADSB) so the data will be biased towards commercial aviation
The reason the helicopter traffic is plotted separately is that helicopters generally can land anywhere and avoiding by line of sight by Small unmanned aircraft systems (SUAS) pilots has nothing to do with the distance to the

Summary

Introduction

The FAA unmanned aircraft system (UAS) facility maps (UASFM) are used as guidance for FAA airspace approval in controlled airspace for UAS operations [1]. The maps provide altitude limits for each 1 degree × 1 degree (roughly 1 mile × 1 mile) grid in the airspace. Small unmanned aircraft systems (SUAS) flight approval is efficient and usually automatic for requests below that limit; SUAS flights above that limit require special FAA consideration for additional safety and risk mitigation, for example, on the runway or close to the approach path. Our analysis provides a possible paradigm for all SUAS FM decisions, in a way that could be deployed nationwide within the FAA UASFM, and worldwide within the context of drone safety near airports

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