CHANGE: Civilian drones to fill the skies after law shake-up.

The US Federal Aviation Administration allows for recreational use of remote-controlled air vehicles, but the Columbia Packing case blurs the line because the UAV became a surveillance tool. Commercial use is also illegal – last week real estate agents in Los Angeles, California, were ordered to stop using helicopter drones to shoot aerial movies of properties they are selling. “Although the FAA allows hobbyists to fly model airplanes for recreational purposes, that authority does not extend to operators flying unmanned aircraft for business purposes,” the Air Division of the Los Angeles police department reminded the California Association of Realtors.

That could soon change. The FAA plans to unveil a new set of rules this year that will cover the burgeoning interest in flying commercial and private UAVs.

Hey, I saw the drone photo-shoot on Selling L.A. How can they outlaw that? It’s an outrage!

Related: A pro-civilian-drone editorial. “The first powered, fixed-wing aircraft ever to fly was an uncontrolled steam-powered drone built by American aviation pioneer Samuel Langley. That was in 1896. It’s high time we got our drones back.”