President’s Perspective

AMA BEGINS REMOTE ID
FRIA APPLICATION PROCESS

By Rich Hanson, AMA President | richh@modelaircraft.org

TO ADDRESS national security, safety, and law enforcement concerns, Congress mandated the requirement for Remote ID as part of the 2018 FAA Reauthorization Act. In September 2023, all model aircraft weighing more than 0.55 pounds will be required to comply with Remote ID.

Fortunately, AMA and its advocacy team successfully worked with industry stakeholders and petitioned the federal government to allow our members to fly at most of our AMA flying fields without meeting the requirement to broadcast their identification.

The FAA is calling these locations FAA-Recognized Identification Areas (FRIAs). Members will be able to continue flying at FRIAs with the same equipment and models that they already have and use. Members not flying at a FRIA can still use their existing equipment and comply with Remote ID by adding a small module transmitting the Remote ID information. This module can be moved from aircraft to aircraft and shared among a pilot’s fleet. Members can also comply with standard Remote ID by acquiring and operating model aircraft that have Remote ID built into the aircraft systems.

In October 2022, the FAA released Advisory Circular (AC) 91-57C and AC 89-3. These ACs were an important step toward allowing AMA to establish FRIAs for our members. The ACs clarify that only recognized community-based organizations (CBOs) and educational institutions can apply for FRIA status. Clubs and individuals desiring FRIA status must submit their applications through their CBO. The CBO will then apply for FRIA status on the applicant’s behalf.

Now that AMA is officially recognized as a CBO, we can apply for FRIA status on behalf of our clubs. This is a service that we are happy to provide for both our members and 2,500 clubs across the country. Clubs and Special Interest Groups will receive all the benefits of CBO status without the oversight and administrative requirements because they will be operating under AMA’s CBO umbrella.

On November 22, 2022, AMA club officers received an email survey requesting preliminary FRIA data. This information goes directly to AMA to help staff vet and prepare for the FRIA application process. Only one survey is to be filled out per flying site. If you’re unsure whether your club filled out the survey, please consult with your club officers. Submitting multiple surveys on behalf of a single flying site will delay your FRIA application. If you have questions, please contact the AMA Clubs department at fria@modelaircraft.org or call (765) 287-1256.

Following are some of the topics addressed in the preliminary survey:

1. Please identify a single point of contact for the flying site. Anyone on behalf of the club managing the flying site can serve in this role if he or she is well versed in club, AMA, and federal requirements. This individual might be asked to represent the club to the public or FAA. We recommend that this individual be a club safety coordinator, officer, or point of contact. Additionally, the club should identify someone who will likely have tenure because the FAA needs to be notified of any changes to a FRIA’s point of contact within 10 days.
2. Be prepared to answer questions about the types of operations, models flown, general hours of operations, and the airspace club members use at the flying site.
3. Let us know if your flying site is in controlled or uncontrolled airspace. If you are unsure, enter your flying site address at https://faa.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer.
4. Please submit a digital copy of your letter of agreement with any nearby airports if you are in controlled airspace.

Although we’re anxious to get this process started, this is a hurry-up-and-wait situation. We need all clubs to submit the survey sent in November as soon as possible. After the survey is submitted, the identified point of contact will be notified by AMA to review and discuss the application. AMA will then submit the flying site’s FRIA application on the club’s behalf. We anticipate that the FAA will not start approving FRIAs until the third quarter of 2023.

Thank you for your cooperation as we continue to work on behalf of our members, clubs, and the hobby as a whole. As always, if you have any questions, reach out anytime.

Congratulations to the Southwest Soaring Society (SWSS) and the F5J community for a highly successful World Championship Team Selection, held October 28-30, 2022, at the Silent Wings Ranch near Maricopa, Arizona. The event saw 57 pilots competing in 16 rounds of intense competition, at times in trying conditions, all vying to represent the US in the 2023 FAI F5J World Championship for Electric Powered Thermal Duration Gliders.

Until next time, keep ’em safe, keep ’em flying, and continue to enjoy this great hobby!