Abstract :
WHILE THE SALES statistics are still being assembled, media headlines suggest that Christmas 2014 was an outstanding one for the sale of small, ???hobbyist??? drones for recreational purposes. While battery life is a real problem for most of these toy drones, with flying time generally being limited to no more than 10 to 15 minutes, their appeal has been huge. However, their proliferation has created major safety, security and privacy concerns. It should not surprise anyone to find that disruptive technological breakthroughs can leave affected regulatory bodies floundering in their wake. Commercial drones range from tiny four-rotor, battery driven ???toys??? to serious unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), capable of lifting one or more tonnes of cargo and travelling extensive distances more or less autonomously. They present an obvious instance where regulatory authorities around the world are either scrambling to play catch-up or, in a few instances ??? notably in the US ??? seem to be trying to smother the upstart technology with a blanket of ???impossible??? rules.
