On August 22, 2014 Governor Robert Bentley released a press release on drone use in Alabama. The release covered use in law enforcement and agriculture. The Governor has created a new drone task force to study the following:

• Study the requirements for drone operations in Alabama, and the process for FAA approval;

• Apply for necessary FAA waivers for drone use in Alabama airspace;

• Meet with stakeholders to discuss plans for drone use;

• Recommend a statewide plan for drone use in Alabama

There are three key factors of drone use in Alabama: law enforcement, commercial use, and agriculture.

From a law enforcement perspective, drone use can help solve almost any type of crime. In fact, Alabama used drones in a kidnapping case in 2013. It lets officers get a fresh perspective of a case and saves time and effort. Why would you send an officer to investigate something when you could send a drone? It keeps the officer out of harms way. In Governor Bentley’s address, he stated that law enforcement drones would not be armed, but this is still a scary thought.  The government having the ability to watch our every move?  Scary stuff.  In my opinion, law enforcement drones should only be used in very tense circumstances; it should have to go through the governor for usage.

From a commercial and agricultural standpoint, I am all for drone use. It saves time, money and effort of a dying agricultural industry and can revolutionize commercial enterprise. One company taking on commercial drone use is Amazon.com; they have experimented with a program to deliver goods door-to0door by drone.  It could save the company time and money plus deliver goods fast and efficiently.

All in all, drone use is a very valuable tool. Drone research has the potential bring industry and jobs to Alabama, I believe Alabama should be the pioneer in drone use. With companies in huntsville into similar research, I think our economy would grow in size and number of jobs.