Lofty potential for drones in real estate, other businesses

BOTHELL — Toby Barnett set the small, white, four-rotor drone down on the driveway, stepped back and powered it up. The drone zoomed up above the two-story Bothell home, buzzing like a cloud of angry hornets.

The drone swept around the home, shooting video that Barnett will use in listing it for sale. Then he brought the craft in low, threading it between a trellis and up to the home’s front door.

Aerial video “just has that wow factor,” said the Marysville-based real estate agent — and self-described tech geek.

And it can be done quickly and cheaply with a drone — or unmanned aerial system (UAS), as they are called by the aerospace industry.

Real estate photography is just one of myriad potential commercial uses for drones. The commercial and civil UAS markets could be worth about $8 billion a year over the next decade, according to the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International.

However, growth in those markets has been hampered by lack of regulations. Commercial uses have been banned altogether while the Federal Aviation Administration works on how to integrate drones that weigh less than 55 pounds into the national airspace.

The FAA is well into the process but won’t say when it plans to have a proposed rule finished.

In the meantime, the agency is granting case-by-case exemptions. The FAA granted its first exemption for use in real estate to an agent in Arizona in early January.

Barnett applied for one earlier this month but doesn’t expect to hear back for several months. Since October, he has used a drone to film seven homes as test cases for the safe-operating procedures and maintenance program that he outlined in his FAA application.

Last week, the FAA granted two more exemptions, both for aerial photography and cinematography. So far, the agency has approved 16 exemptions out of nearly 300 applications nationwide.

Drones are great for shooting real estate, especially large properties and homes with desirable views, Barnett said.

“For your average residential property, it’s probably not a game-changer,” he said. But it could be for developers building and selling large, planned communities.

Agriculture will be the biggest commercial market driver, according to the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International, which is based in Arlington, Virginia.

Farming uses include monitoring plant health and growth. Detecting disease and pest outbreaks enables farmers to more efficiently and selectively spray pesticides and other treatments, according to the association’s 2013 economic report.

Other potential uses include mail and package delivery, news coverage and scientific research.

Public safety is another big potential use, such as monitoring wildfires or finding lost hikers.

However, substantial technological and regulatory hurdles have to be cleared.

What kind of training do drone operators have to have?

What about people’s expectations for privacy?

How can drones be used safely in crowded airspaces, such as around Paine Field or Seattle-Tacoma International Airport?

The drone that crash-landed this week on the White House lawn underscores how complicated a task the FAA faces.

Safety, of course, is a top concern. The FAA received 193 reports of drones entering restricted airspace or having close calls with airplanes in a nine-month period last year — the most recent data available.

Two of the close calls were reported by pilots flying near Paine Field.

The airport’s administration was not aware of the reports, said Bill Dolan, Paine Field’s deputy director.

“It doesn’t take a lot of damage in the right place to bring an airplane down,” he said.

Bird strikes, for example, led to the now famous “Miracle on the Hudson” in 2009, when US Airways Flight 1549 safely landed shortly after losing power in both engines. It had flown through a flock of Canada geese after departing New York’s LaGuardia International Airport.

“The assumption is that the average kid who gets one for Christmas doesn’t have a lot of training with it,” Dolan said.

For now, small drones used recreationally are regarded as “model” aircraft and must stay below 400 feet above ground level and not fly within three miles of airports.

On Thursday, the FAA issued a press release reminding users that Sunday’s Super Bowl is a “no drone zone.”

Dan Catchpole: 425-339-3454; dcatchpole@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @dcatchpole.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Business

Black Press Media operates Sound Publishing, the largest community news organization in Washington State with dailies and community news outlets in Alaska.
Black Press Media concludes transition of ownership

Black Press Media, which operates Sound Publishing, completed its sale Monday (March 25), following the formerly announced corporate restructuring.

Maygen Hetherington, executive director of the Historic Downtown Snohomish Association, laughs during an interview in her office on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024, in Snohomish, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Maygen Hetherington: tireless advocate for the city of Snohomish

Historic Downtown Snohomish Association receives the Opportunity Lives Here award from Economic Alliance.

FILE - Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs poses in front of photos of the 15 people who previously held the office on Nov. 22, 2021, after he was sworn in at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Hobbs faces several challengers as he runs for election to the office he was appointed to last fall. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)
Secretary of State Steve Hobbs: ‘I wanted to serve my country’

Hobbs, a former Lake Stevens senator, is the recipient of the Henry M. Jackson Award from Economic Alliance Snohomish County.

Mark Duffy poses for a photo in his office at the Mountain Pacific Bank headquarters on Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Mark Duffy: Building a hometown bank; giving kids an opportunity

Mountain Pacific Bank’s founder is the recipient of the Fluke Award from Economic Alliance Snohomish County.

Barb Tolbert poses for a photo at Silver Scoop Ice Cream on Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Barb Tolbert: Former mayor piloted Arlington out of economic brink

Tolbert won the Elson S. Floyd Award, honoring a leader who has “created lasting opportunities” for the underserved.

Photo provided by 
Economic Alliance
Economic Alliance presented one of the Washington Rising Stem Awards to Katie Larios, a senior at Mountlake Terrace High School.
Mountlake Terrace High School senior wins state STEM award

Katie Larios was honored at an Economic Alliance gathering: “A champion for other young women of color in STEM.”

The Westwood Rainier is one of the seven ships in the Westwood line. The ships serve ports in the Pacific Northwest and Northeast Asia. (Photo provided by Swire Shipping)
Westwood Shipping Lines, an Everett mainstay, has new name

The four green-hulled Westwood vessels will keep their names, but the ships will display the Swire Shipping flag.

A Keyport ship docked at Lake Union in Seattle in June 2018. The ship spends most of the year in Alaska harvesting Golden King crab in the Bering Sea. During the summer it ties up for maintenance and repairs at Lake Union. (Keyport LLC)
In crabbers’ turbulent moment, Edmonds seafood processor ‘saved our season’

When a processing plant in Alaska closed, Edmonds-based business Keyport stepped up to solve a “no-win situation.”

Angela Harris, Executive Director of the Port of Edmonds, stands at the port’s marina on Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024, in Edmonds, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Leadership, love for the Port of Edmonds got exec the job

Shoring up an aging seawall is the first order of business for Angela Harris, the first woman to lead the Edmonds port.

The Cascade Warbirds fly over Naval Station Everett. (Sue Misao / The Herald file)
Bothell High School senior awarded $2,500 to keep on flying

Cascade Warbirds scholarship helps students 16-21 continue flight training and earn a private pilot’s certificate.

Rachel Gardner, the owner of Musicology Co., a new music boutique record store on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024 in Edmonds, Washington. Musicology Co. will open in February, selling used and new vinyl, CDs and other music-related merchandise. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
New Edmonds record shop intends to be a ‘destination for every musician’

Rachel Gardner opened Musicology Co. this month, filling a record store gap in Edmonds.

MyMyToyStore.com owner Tom Harrison at his brick and mortar storefront on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Burst pipe permanently closes downtown Everett toy store

After a pipe flooded the store, MyMyToystore in downtown Everett closed. Owner Tom Harrison is already on to his next venture.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.