Wednesday, December 31, 2014
Sunday, December 28, 2014
Merging industries
Maximization
I can’t help noticing signs along the road now. Today I saw
several video wall displays, one was a used car dealer that had an American
flag flying digitally on his billboard out in front of the business. There is a
Toyota dealer in Pensacola off of 29 that has an ad for the service department
and for the Tundra then another ten second ad for the 4Runner one for a Prius
going through their whole inventory. Then there was a Ford dealer North of Mobile,
Alabama that showcased their service department the Ford Focus and their trucks
the same way. There are others that flip ads everyone ten seconds, everything
from GIECO Auto insurance, health insurance, auto leasing, assisted living
facilities, churches to my favorite, barbeque restaurants. It seems kind of
random.
Primary Media has created a Facebook page showcasing the
companies they are advertising on their billboards. I think they are onto
something here! Tommy Jennings of The Image of Magazine was telling me how he is
looking for video content for businesses advertises in the print magazine and
he loves the aerial video from the small UAS/Drones. I gave him the contact
information for the local UAS/Drone professionals in his area. I recommended
XFly for training and systems so he could get his own imagery and video for his
clients the way he conceives it.
The convergence of UAS/Drone technology and imagery and LED
lighting and video wall advertising is amazing. I haven’t even scratched the
surface of the potential. There is so much more that can be done, better and more
efficiently. With Stampede Global Media absorbing the Unmanned Vehicle
University, T.J. Diaz from XFly UAV and XFly Films with in New Business
Development for XFly Films and DX2 Broadcast. They say “Birds of a feather
flock together”. I haven’t even gotten
all of these players talking yet but I am sure after this blog, I can make it
happen. There is about to be a technological revolution once these industries
really start to jell and this blog is getting that party started.
Saturday, December 20, 2014
Jesse Ventura tried to pick a fight with me
My name is Reuben Lowing, I am a former US Navy SEAL and in 2006 at the West Coast SEAL Team Reunion I introduced myself to Jesse Ventura and I mentioned that I was involved with Politics locally as the Vice Chairman and precinct operations chair of the 79th caucus of the San Diego Republican Party. At that minute Jesse Ventura began bashing the Republican Party, President George W. Bush and all Republicans. We started talking about Prop 8 and he told me a story of his gay friend who’s partner was dying and he couldn't say his last good bye because they weren't considered married. Then he went on to talk about how John Kerry should be president. By this time we had moved away from the party and I was getting tired of his brow beating and I told him “I remember when John Kerry testified before congress and labeled our Veteran's as rapist and baby killers. John Kerry’s protesters spit on my uncle when he came back from Vietnam and that incident still effects him today. I hate John Kerry!” At this point I felt that it might get physical and I have a lot of experience boxing but Jesse was about a foot taller than me so I noticed that he was wearing Teva sandals and I was wearing my desert combat boots. My plan if he started anything I would stomp on his instep with my boots and right as I had that thought, he put his hand out and said “I don't mean anything personal, I just wanted you to see how nasty it can get in politics.” We shook hands and walked back to the tent.
A couple of days later a buddy from SEAL Team one told me about Chris Kyle knocking him out, I believe Jesse Ventura was looking for a fight with someone at the reunion that year. If my testimony can help in the law suit for HarperCollins and Tanya Kyle please feel free to contact me.
I live in Lewisville Texas and I can be reached at (619)313-1073 or reuben.lowing@outlook.com
Saturday, December 6, 2014
Brandon Schulman your country needs you
Dealing with a con
artist
After reading the article on the WND website stating that
the Obama executive order instructing the Department of Homeland Security to
not execute deportation orders was not signed and filed. Right away it made me
think of the law suit filed against the FAA for grounding Gene Robinson and
Lawsuit was thrown out because the FAA did not properly serve the cease
and desist order, sending an e-mail which the judge said “E-mails are not
subject to judicial review” and threw out the law suit on a technicality. Letting
the FAA off of the hook. I see that if the president did not actually sign or
file his executive order, he is baiting the congress to shut down the
government and the states like Texas are being set up to have their lawsuits thrown
out.
Brandon Schulman, you might want to call Greg Abbott’s, John
Beohner and Darrell Issa’s offices and offer to advise them about paying
attention to little details like if the order was properly executed and if
e-mails are subject to judicial review.
Sunday, November 30, 2014
Famous people I've meet and how I meet them
Famous people I’ve
meet
Colonel Sanders, I
shook his hand in the Cherry Festival parade when I was nine.
Durwood Hershey, The
outdoor sport write for the Detroit Free Press was on my paper route and he
taught me to fly fish.
Cheryl Wheeler Duncan
Woman’s world champion kickboxer and stunt woman. We trained together at
the same boxing gym.
Roy Jones Sr. World renowned boxing trainer and my mentor.
Roy Jones Sr. World renowned boxing trainer and my mentor.
Bo Jackson We
meet him at the sunshine State games in Gainesville Florida. He was running
track for Auburn University.
Antonio Tarver He
fought Roy Jones Jr. in the Sunshine State games in 1983
Lemuel Nelson Contender
for Junior Lightweight championship. We were sparring partners.
Kelsey Banks 1988
Olympian, we fought each other in 1982.
Earnie Shavers Former
Heavyweight contender. I got his autograph when he fought in Pensacola in 1983.
Rudy Beocsh Longest serving Navy SEAL, he was master Chief of Command at SEAL Team Two and I would see him around the compound and he would always talk to me.
Julian Wheeler He
is the former WBC Continental Americas Super Featherweight, USBA Lightweight,
and IBC Light Welterweight champion. We were sparring partner on the Boxing
team.
Sean Fletcher USA
Boxing champion three years in a row and contender fighting for world
championships three times.
Sugar Ray Leonard
1976 Olympic boxer and all-time great professional boxer. I trained at his camp with Roy Jones Junior in 1987.
Eugene Speed NABF
Super Featherweight champion. We were sparring partners.
Michael Bent WBO
World Heavyweight Champion. We trained together at Sugar Ray Leonard’s camp.
Michael
Trainer Sugar Ray Lenard’s boxing attorney.
Tony Suggs Virginia
State Light Welterweight Champion and USA Boxing Nation Champion, we fought in
1987.
Danny “Little Red”
Lopez Hall of fame Featherweight champion. We meet at the boxing hall of
fame banquet in 1988 and I introduced him to Roy Jones Jr.
Carlos Palomino Hall
of fame welterweight champion. We meet at the boxing hall of fame banquet and I
introduced him to Roy Jones Jr. and I used to run into him at amateur boxing
events in LA.
Henry Tillman Olympic Heavyweight Gold Medalist and contender for
the heavyweight title. We meet at the boxing hall of fame banquet in 1988.
Martin Sheen Actor, I ran into him in Paraguay in 1990 and he was there with Green Peace.
Martin Sheen Actor, I ran into him in Paraguay in 1990 and he was there with Green Peace.
Dick Cheney US Vice president. We meet at the Naval Special Warfare
Unit in Panama during Operation “Just Cause”.
Emmitt Smith Emmitt
Smith, I used to watch him play high school football at Escambia and ran into
him at Roy Jones Jr.’s first pro fight.
Carlos Hathcock Famous
Marine sniper who wrote the book “One shot, one kill. Marine sniper” Was one of
my instructors in Sniper school.
Victor Cordova WBA
Super middleweight champion. We meet in Panama at an amateur boxing show.
Guillermo Endara President
of Panama, I jumped out of his plane while he was in it.
James “Bone Crusher”
Smith Former WBA Heavyweight Champion, we trained together in Fort Bragg in
1991.
Jack Kemp US
Senator and Vice Presidential candidate. We meet at the Roy Jones Jr. vs Julio
Gonzales fight. I ran into him again a few year later in the San Diego airport.
Fred Levin Known
for rewriting Florida’s Medicaid
Third-Party Recovery Act allowing the state of Florida to sue the Tobacco
Industry. He was Roy Jones Jr. promoter and legal consultant. I call him every time
I go to Pensacola.
George Foreman Two
time heavyweight champion of the world. We meet in Portland when Roy Jones Jr.
fought Clinton Woods and ringside in Dallas 2013.
Bob Arum We meet
in the casino prior to the McKline vs Klitskho fight and sitting ringside in
Dallas.
Tyrone Woods Meet
at the Far East Rock.
Glenn Dougherty Meet
at the Far East Rock
Kevin Ward Professional
baseball player and thoroughbred breeder. Kevin and Craig Lefferts Set me up to
give chapel services for the Braves and the Padres in 1995.
Craig Lefferts Major
league relief pitcher. We meet when he and Kevin Ward had me give chapel
services to the Braves and the Padres in 1995.
Trevor Hoffman Famous relief pitcher of the San Diego Padres. Craig Lefferts introduced us.
Dexter Yeager First Amway Diamond, we meet in Mobil Alabama at a convention.
Herd Mitchell Actor who played the boxing commissioner in the movie "Ali" but he also played Dean Whitter, the Saturn Guy, the goofy manager in Staples commercials, the "Blue and the Grey". He invited me to have an Italian gourmet dinner at his house. We meet several times and talked on the phone often.
Tony Gwynn Hall
of fame slugger, I meet him many times when I worked security for the Padres in
1996.
Orlin Norris WBA
World Cruiserweight champion, we managed a fighter together.
Terry Norris Great
all time welterweight and Junior Middleweight champions. He likes to clown on
me.
Jesse Ventura Pro
wrestler, actor and Governor of Minnesota. I meet him at the SEAL Team reunion
in 2006 and we got into a heated argument over politic.
Merqui Sosa Former
Light heavyweight champion, we meet at Kelsey Banks’ gym while my son Devin
trained there.
Andy MacDowell Actress
and model, meet her at the J. Paul Getti Museum around 1999 and she autographed
Devin’s drawing.
Dennis Quaid Actor,
he was with Andy MacDowell at the Getti Museum.
Tim Bradley Jr. Welterweight Champion, we meet in Palm Springs with his PR manager Tommy Jennings.
Tom Hopkins Famous sales trainer.
Ted Batkin Chairman of the California Citrus Research board for 20 years, I consult with him on agriculture and drone applications.
Ted Batkin Chairman of the California Citrus Research board for 20 years, I consult with him on agriculture and drone applications.
Gene Robinson Sued
the FAA to be allowed to use small drones for search and rescue. I have visited
him several times at his facility just north of Austin.
Mitt Romney Two
time Republican Presidential candidate, I meet him in San Diego when he ran in
2008. I ran into him again last week at the Las Vegas airport.
Melissa Rycroft Is
a Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader, Melissa is studying to be an engineer. I got to
sit next to her on the plane leaving Dallas to Salt Lake.
Erica Is a Dallas
Cowboy Cheerleader with a degree in communications and she has a strong faith
and would like to do evangelical speaking. We sat next to each other on the
plane from Dallas to Salt Lake. I do not know her last name.
Saturday, November 15, 2014
Family Pools for Healthcare
Using banks to administer family pools for healthcare
Back in 2008 I had a discussion with another former Navy SEAL who consulted with Thelma Drake the Republican congressman from Virginia and he devised the solution utilizing microloans in Iraqi for small businesses in Iraq to operate and expand because the trickle down wasn't working because the government leaders were pocketing the money the US was giving them. I was informing him on the loan modifications and he was conceptualizing a mortgage backed security bringing in investors to help home owners stay in their homes. During this process he spelled out to me his concept of creating a family pool administered by banks for healthcare. Banks would create accounts for healthcare costs funded by the increased in the minimum wage. Employers would pay into each employee's family healthcare account equal to about $3.60 per hour. There would social pressure through the family to live healthier. Undocumented aliens that go into the emergency room would give their information and be assigned to their family pool to cover their medical costs.
This former Navy SEAL buddy of mine will be presenting this concept to congress next week. His timing with the issues with immigration and healthcare is perfect. What nobody seems to be addressing is that 70 million baby-boomers are leaving the work force and we need more younger people to take those jobs or those jobs will be outsourced to china, India or Mexico but by utilizing these family pools, it doesn't matter where you are working. Doctors would like this solution much better than the current healthcare system where they have to wait for the government to pay them or possibly never get paid. This solution would be similar to PPOs, they would just have to except the family pool account cards, from the banks.
Back in 2008 I had a discussion with another former Navy SEAL who consulted with Thelma Drake the Republican congressman from Virginia and he devised the solution utilizing microloans in Iraqi for small businesses in Iraq to operate and expand because the trickle down wasn't working because the government leaders were pocketing the money the US was giving them. I was informing him on the loan modifications and he was conceptualizing a mortgage backed security bringing in investors to help home owners stay in their homes. During this process he spelled out to me his concept of creating a family pool administered by banks for healthcare. Banks would create accounts for healthcare costs funded by the increased in the minimum wage. Employers would pay into each employee's family healthcare account equal to about $3.60 per hour. There would social pressure through the family to live healthier. Undocumented aliens that go into the emergency room would give their information and be assigned to their family pool to cover their medical costs.
This former Navy SEAL buddy of mine will be presenting this concept to congress next week. His timing with the issues with immigration and healthcare is perfect. What nobody seems to be addressing is that 70 million baby-boomers are leaving the work force and we need more younger people to take those jobs or those jobs will be outsourced to china, India or Mexico but by utilizing these family pools, it doesn't matter where you are working. Doctors would like this solution much better than the current healthcare system where they have to wait for the government to pay them or possibly never get paid. This solution would be similar to PPOs, they would just have to except the family pool account cards, from the banks.
Thursday, November 13, 2014
Now that was a fight!
Ode to Tim
I am writing this to an acquaintance from school back in
Michigan. We weren’t friends, we played on the soccer team together and I
remember keeping an eye on him because he was a hothead and I saw him give a
serious beat-down of a bully who used to terrorize me from the third grade. My
mother who was a teacher used to talk about him and how creative and smart he
was. I noticed Tim on Facebook and I sent him a message giving him my number
and asked him to call me. We talked and he let me know that he has been
fighting cancer for over 13 years. I noticed today that he posted on Facebook
that he will be under hospice care. I have mixed feelings about Tim’s
situation. There have been times since my divorce where I have asked God to
take my soul to a place without the strife and burdens that weight me down but
the thought of leaving before getting to know someone better or before I knew
my boys had their lives on track and traction moving forward in their lives
pulled me back and gave me the gumption to continue. I don’t know how it would
be if I were in Tim’s place. I envy his fierce attitude to continue to fight.
That is how I will remember him.
Tim, if you are reading this the fact that you have been
fighting this cancer for 13+ years and it is amazing how you are still willing
to fight if it would give you more time. That kind of endurance and tenacity is
remarkable. It is not like you lost the fight, if this were in the boxing ring
you would have gotten off the matt more times and lasted more rounds than
Rocky. This life is just training for eternity and you’re ready for eternity.
Good bye.
Tuesday, November 11, 2014
Golden Corral pulls bait and switch on veterans
Golden Corral advertised "Free buffet for veterans on 'Veterans Day" and when we arrived this sign was on the door! Some idiot in management figured that vets would go ahead and pay full price and not show up on Monday the 17th and save the franchise money. Well they need to pay. Vets need to storm Golden Corral next Monday the 17th and make them pay so they remember what day Veterans day is on.
Monday, November 10, 2014
Thursday, October 30, 2014
It's the progression
They mean well
Remember when I first got into the mortgage business and
interest rates were at 7.5% and Allen Greenspan was trying to curb inflation
and curtail over simulated enthusiasm for the dot-com industry. Rates went all
the way up to 9% when the market stalled and rates came back down. Then they
hit rock bottom again after 9/11. Then in 2006 and 2007 for 14 months he raised
interest rate a quarter point every month attempting to push home owners into
30 years fixed rate mortgages but they couldn’t because property values slowed
and these borrowers couldn’t show income or credit scores high enough to refinance
out of the option ARM loans that were about to recast increasing their payments
significantly. Who would have thought these home owners would just walk away?
It was a stroke of genius for these mortgage companies to invest in default
insurance? You would have thought they wanted these home owners to default so
they would recovered not just the principle balance but 30 years interest. Who
could have known that selling these mortgages into the secondary market would
have increase the odds of these mortgages going into default, causing a 30 day
late which would have played hell with underwriters for those homeowners who
wanted to have the security of a 30 fixed mortgage.
It’ll all come out in the wash
The FAA slowing down
the commercialization the UAS/Drone industry has some people thinking that it’s
for the benefit of the established military contractors but the DOD recently
put out an RFI and didn’t include these companies. If the DOD doesn’t want them,
how well do you think the commercial markets will take to them or better yet,
how well do you think it will be welcomed by the commercial world?
Enterprising
I wrote about how DJI and 3D Robotics were priced just right
for the commercial market and just like the Japanese car manufactures poised to
saturate the market and then introduce their higher quality, more expensive
products. Not trying to be prophetic but 3D Robotics is about to introduce
their Enterprise line of commercial unmanned systems. SkyWard is part of this progression. There are a lot of people excited about their new line with the airframes to go with their
unique, open architecture operating systems that are able to integrate with
smart phones and tablets. This is going to take dot-com business to a whole new
level.
Saturday, October 18, 2014
The Ag Formula
The full package
Everyone is the rage over precision agriculture, using
spectral imagery to determine everything from productions estimates down to
determining the sugar content in grapes that are ripe for picking to distinguishing
healthy plants from unhealthy plants by measuring the chlorophyll content of
the leaves and spectral reflectance determining wilt which is an indicator of
diseased plants. It is possible to measure the moisture, carbon and salinity content
in the soil. The same technology can detect the type and species of weeds. This
is where the magic happens. It is a known practice to figure out the mineral
content in the soil by the type of weeds that grow in it. This is great for
saving time flying over a farm or orchard but then what do you do?
Treatment
So what does a UAS/Drone pilot do once he does all of the heavy
lifting flying his expensive technology to collect valuable data. Who makes the
real money? The Ag Consultant and Crop Scientists charge 5c per acre and
another 5c per acre for soil analysis. To make $50,000 per year you would have
to have 500,000 acres under contract for both Ag Consulting services and soil
analysis. Oh but they also get a piece of the fertilizer and pesticides they
subscribe. What is interesting is that there are issues that are caused by
these commercial fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides. NPK fertilizer causes
hard pack amongst other things which prevents water from penetrating the soil,
instead running off causing erosion and then is causes plankton and algae to
super go, die quickly and that sucks the oxygen out of the water causing
dead-zones in the oceans and lakes. Then they recommended not tilling the soil
and just punching the seeds into the ground which will reduce erosion. What
they did was recommend spraying the fertilizers on the surface. The problem
with that is, it rained and all of that fertilizer ran off into the lakes and
streams creating algae blooms leaving hundreds of thousands of people around
the Great Lakes in Ohio, Minnesota and California. Then in Panama and Columbia
they had an herbicide run off and contaminate the water supplies with chemicals
that carcinogenetic and cause birth defects. I would bet that it is worth more
than 10c per acre to solve these issues.
The ECO-Agri Formula that GUTC uses to kill palm weevils by
disrupting the molecular structure of the bug’s exoskeleton allowing water to penetrate
and rupture their internals and gum up the villi that they use to breath. The
same process of separating the molecules on residual NPK, breaking them up and
making usable for the natural microbes to digest. These microbes attach
themselves to the roots of plants and for the purpose of converting nitrogen in
the air soil making usable for the plants. The nitrogen in chemical fertilizers
isn’t the proper type that the natural Microbes like. Then there are super
microbes that digest hydrocarbons like oil sludge and the byproduct is a carbon
based liquid that is milky clear and smells like ammonia and it is loaded with
vitamins and nutrients, the type that the natural microbes love. It makes the
plants more robust and resistant to infestations. It doesn’t kill bugs. The
whole balanced solution of determining the right mix of treating the soil by
reducing potassium other minerals and chemicals that cause certain weeds to grow,
knowing where to increase the irrigation, add fertilizer, the right type of
fertilizer or treat the soil. I know more than most but I know people who know
more than I and her name is Lena Vander Stap and she loves this stuff.
Tuesday, October 7, 2014
Tune in
It’s another round
In 2004 I produced a treatment for an interactive boxing TV
show, the same week of the premier of the “Apprentice” then the very next week
press releases came out for “The Next Great Champ” and “The Contender”. So we
had to put our show on hold to see how these shows performed. They stunk but it
was a boon for boxing. There was a demand to fight the boxers who appeared on
the shows. Now there are shows recruiting show UAS/Drone pilots. There is the
show I am seeking talent for with XFly Films and there is another network out
of Europe and I have been hearing from the talent I am lining up that they are
getting calls from another reality show looking for content.
No matter how well they do in the ratings is going to be a
boon for the industry. First it will erase the sigma of the evil killing and
spying drones and shift the focus to the art and science in the whole process.
I can see kids glued to the TV like I was to Jacques Cousteau, taking their DJI
toy quad-rotors and attempting to duplicate applications they see depicted on
these shows. The media is inadvertently stimulating curiosity for this
technology and what is going to happen is these Drone reality shows are going
to hone the focus toward beneficial applications and foster curiosity which is
going to lead to more innovation. National Geographic spurred a generation of
engineers. These types of programs will do the same thing and when the audience
sees amazing cinematography, innovations and research in science happening.
Young people are going to learn more about physics, entomology, agriculture and
how we are effecting the earth both good and bad like we’ve never seen. When
the viewers see it all from a bird’s eye view it is going to have an effect.
When Joe Hupy from the University of Wisconsin shows the
smog over Milwaukee compared to the pristine air over Lake Michigan. When crop
scientist and ag-consultants see the impact of NPK run off and how the spectral
reflectivity of plants comparing those from farms using chemical fertilizers to
those using microbial technologies. I can see an interest in higher math such
as trigonometry when they see surveyors and civil engineers using drones. There
will be a technology boom the likes which have not been imagined.
Sunday, October 5, 2014
Does it do the shopping and ballance the check book too?
Even the DOD knows it’s a free market
I was speaking with one of my contacts who makes aerial
cameras and sensors who told me the DOD put out a Request for Information (RFI)
for new UAV/Drone technologies and they didn’t open it up to the old guard,
Northrup Grumman, In-Situ, AeroVironment and Lockheed Martin. He told me that
the submission from new manufacturers was overwhelming. They are tired of
overpaying for substandard product. That should be a warning to the FAA who is
trying to force the same overpriced systems onto the commercial market. They
won’t stand for it and a judge won’t allow it. As one judge has already stated “The
FAA doesn’t have the authority to regulate commerce”. When you here the phrase “In
the interest of public safety” thrown around by the FAA, that pertains to
commercial airliners carrying passengers. UAS/Drones don’t carry passengers “Yet”!
I know that Patrick Egan of SUAS News is pushing for an exemption for UAS
under 4lbs. I think that is going to be good for the industry. I would like to
see it up to 55lbs. Basically that would mean these smaller systems wouldn’t
require the operator to have a license, once the FAA decides what kind of
license is needed. These overpriced technologies can’t be pushed down the
public’s throat. They can buy off politicians but the commercial market is all
about efficiency and economics. The public will pay hundreds of thousands of
dollars for technologies but they have to be worth the price. One of my SEAL
Team buddies reminded me the other day about a story I was telling in the
locker room about my now ex-wife wanted me to buy her a Kirby vacuum cleaner
for $2,400 and I said “For $2,400 I better be able to drive it to work!” I saw
a Bentley going through the McDonald’s drive through tonight that cost about
$250,000. It looked nice but I am sure it has many more features that other
nice cars like a Ford “Fusion” but get the jobs done. If the FAA is going to
certify systems that are priced in the hundreds of thousands to millions of
dollars, they better certify systems priced significantly less with the same capabilities
and those manufactures who are trying to use their inside connections to push
their high priced products onto the market, they better do the grocery shopping
and balance the checkbook too!
Don't be bullied
As the image comes
clearer
Being 5’4.5” tall I learned to deal with bullies. All it
takes is standing up to them. Even if they think they can beat you, they won’t
risk the possibility of taking a few punches themselves. That is how it is with
the government and dealing with their agencies. I was mistaken when I said that
if you are currently conducting commercial UAS/Drone operations that all the
FAA can do is fine you. They don’t have the jurisdiction to do that unless you
are actually within the approach ways of an airfield, runway or on the airfield
of runway itself. They can get the municipality, parks department, port or the Bureau
of Land Management to charge you. Don’t take my work for it, ask an attorney?
Now with that said. It you hold a pilot’s license you have
exposure. It is like buying and selling real-estate. You don’t need a
real-estate license to buy and sell real-estate but you cannot do it for a fee
without a license. Then you are required to provide full disclosure on all
transactions. I think being licensed to fly a UAS/Drone isn’t a bad idea but
requiring a pilot’s license is not really applicable because you do not need to
know how to fly a plane. I believe that having the FAA ground school should be
a requirement and then specific manufactures training. This would give the FAA
a regulatory authority, a lever, something they could take away if you are
being unsafe, violating someone’s privacy without a warrant and it would
generate revenues for the FAA but if they require a license, they need to allow
you to conduct your business.
Until the FAA does adopt a process I would recommend that
all UAS/Drone professionals have an attorney draw up an attorney opinion letter
which states that they have done the research and found out what I discovered
and then if they decide to still serve you with a written cease and desist and
you take them to court the judge isn’t going to rule on your guilt or innocence
but they are going to rule on whether there is even a law to be broken and if
the FAA has the jurisdiction to do anything except suspend or revoke you pilot’s
license, if you have one. That is where precedence will be set. Even these
knuckleheads who were flying in New York City or in the State and National
Parks should appeal if they are charged by the FAA because unless they were
flying within a runway approach they don’t have jurisdiction. Just like the way
the FAA got the law suit thrown out in the appeal with Texas Equusearch on a technicality
because they served the cease and desist via e-mail. The FAA has no authority
unless you are holding a pilot’s license or operating on an airport, runway or within
the commercial traffic patterns or approaches. Like I said don’t take my word
for it, look it up https://www.faa.gov/.../III.B.pdf or talk to an attorney. Don’t call the FAA, which would be
like asking a bully if he could beat you up or not. He’s not going to say you
can, it would take away his control and it would embolden you.
Friday, October 3, 2014
Keep ahead of the curve
UAS/Drones are not
just for fun anymore
I was utterly amazed not only by how many UAV/Drone pilots
there are out there but how many of them have more business then they can keep
up with. I ask them all “How are you able to work with the FAA restriction of
commercial operations?” I know a couple operators that actually where requested
by the mayor or city council to use the UAS/Drone to take aerial video or
photography of their municipality. They have regular work with their residing
cities. One does just as they are asked and the other fills out the appropriate paperwork,
submits it to the city officials and they get the approval or authorization and
indemnify him and he flies the mission. Almost all of them notify the air
traffic controllers at the local airport notify of their operation and they
tell them if it is okay of if there is too much traffic and they need to
reschedule.
I didn’t know how they were getting away with this ease of
operation until I had a conversation with a former attorney and law enforcement
officer and a pilot and lifelong RC pilot and out of the blue he
explained that the FAA doesn’t have jurisdiction within municipal boundaries
and the attorney/police officer explained that police and sheriffs won’t
enforce FAA policies. So I looked it up and in the FAA policies and procedures
actually says “Outside of airport approach ways FAA policies do not supersede
municipal code.” Now they are talking about airfield operations and activities
but it is not stated exactly that way. So if there is an ordinance that says
you cannot fly your RC plane or UAS/Drone over public property, outside of your
real property you can be arrested or cited but if your city or town doesn’t
have an ordinance than you will be okay unless you violate someone’s privacy or
crash it and cause destruction of public property. Oh and when the city request your services,
you are golden. If the FAA gets wind of your operations they can issue a cease
and desist and fine you so I would make sure you are indemnified and get a good
attorney to represent you and take your chances with a judge who might set
policy or uphold the fine and the municipality picks up the tab.
Old vs new
The problem is the technology is developing so fast that
once the so called authorities find a system or technology that they believe
they can work with someone else comes along with something better and more cost
effective. There are so many examples of bureaucratic obsolesce. The Super Bat
Gene Robinson was required to use to in the most recent search and rescue operation
instead of the Spectra, his usual system. The Super Bat has a 10 hour duration
of flight while the Spectra only has a four hour duration of flight but the
Super Bat costs 15 times as much.
Other examples are the Puma and the Scan Eagle. These
systems were grandfathered by the FAA due to their combat hours logged. There
should be a cost/capabilities ratio instead of just how much can slip past the
public but there is in the free market. The price point that is acceptable for
the private market, i.e. Farmers, surveyors and any private small business
owner for an airframe is $5,000. They will pay more for a sensor. The price per
airframe is correlated by the payload capacity, the higher the sensor payload
the higher the price. Right now the weight of the most top end multi-spectral
camera is seven pounds but there is research being done to create a
multi-spectral and photogrammetry camera under a pound and a half. That would
fit is a Cyclops priced at $5,400.
San Diego Gas and Electric was granted an exemption for power-line inspections and they adopted the PSI Tactical 's"Instant Eye Quad-Rotor" for research an development. Compare that to compare that to the Swiss company IBOTIX quad-rotor solution?
So now where is the value? It is in the operators. GUTC
through my association with XFly Films and my relationship with pioneers in the
industry who have data on UAS professionals throughout the US and around the world
with a range of knowledge and expertise. The old model of business would be to find
a pilot with a system of systems to fly multi-spectral or photogrammetry and
line up business and charge $3,000 to $4,000 per day and charge for data analysis.
GUTC has relationships with technology providers ranging
from airframe systems to sensors with data analytic and processing capabilities
within the hardware of the camera and cloud services to upload data to be
analyzed and algorithms created to allow for in-hardware processing. Those
hobby or cinematography only pilots can learn to fly these more sophisticated operations
from SAR, agriculture and geospatial.
Wednesday, October 1, 2014
We don't need to lay down
It’s Global Secular Reshuffling
After reading the article on SUAS News from Ed Pilkington “Whats keeping americas private drone industry grounded?” immediately the words of then
candidate Obama to “Joe the Plummer”, ”I think when you spread the wealth around, it is good for everyone” Now as I see it our government, the FAA is
hamstringing entrepreneurs not only in the manufacturing sector of the
UAS/Drone industry but the small businessman who like myself could be much better
off financially if there wasn’t a policy restricting the commercial use of
UAS/Drone technologies. What is interesting to me is how all of those law
abiding industry professionals are so adamant on defending the draconian rules of
the FAA, as if by promoting and honoring the nonsensical policy that allows for
the recreational use of this technology but not the commercial use by a trained
professional using the same technology.
Retain an attorney
There has been no legislation passed by congress restricting
the commercial use of UAS/Drone technologies. When a judge is considering a
case with such a disparity in the law where the same technology is allowed by a
farmer, a surveyor or architect’s child to play with but that same farmer can’t
use is to look at his crops or to earn a living to feed that same child, he is
not going to find in favor of the father. If everyone who owns a UAS/Drone that
wants to earn income to pay their bills, holds them self out for aerial
photography, precision agriculture, photogrammetry jobs and they get written
permission from the owner of the property and an attorney opinion letter specific
to the operation being conducted and go to work. When the FAA comes around and
tries to give you a verbal “Cease and Desist order” hand them the letter. Then
if they come back with a written cease and desist letter, give it to your attorney
and not only have him sue the FAA on your behave but have him file a class
action law suit and not only name civilian UAS/Drone pilots and professionals
but military veterans. Do this so when signatures need to be gathered you have
a larger pool to draw from. Then we can cut the artificial leash shackling this
industry in the USA!
Saturday, September 27, 2014
Exemption for movies and film
Is it a light at the
end of the tunnel?
Friday the FAA granted an exemption to six UAV/Drone
production companies authorizing their use to movies and film. When you look at
the FAA web-site and download the documents they only specify one system out of
the six, listing the other five under fictitious names. Astraeus Aerial, Aerial
MOB, LLC, HeliVideo Productions, LLC, Pictorvision Inc, RC Pro Productions
Consulting, LLC dba Vortex Aerial, and Snaproll Media, LLC. There wasn’t any
certification process for selection only the discretion of the FAA. The Motion Picture association of America
sought the consulting services of Chris Dodd the former Connecticut Senator
to influence the FAA to allow these six production companies to utilize
UAS/Drone technology commercially. The one caveat that had any semblance of
logic was the requirement for the UAS/Drone operators must hold a private pilot’s
license.
Reaction
The reaction that got my attention the most is from Patrick
Egan the face of SSUASNews and RCAPA who until today has voiced his opinion that
the fix is in for the military contract manufacturers. This exemption for these
six UAS/Drone production companies did not include a single system from
Lockheed Martin, Northrup Grumman, AeroVironment or Insitu. I talked with Gus
Calderon of ISISCopter whose claim to fame was the flying dress used in the
Lady Gaga music video and he liked the requirement for UAS/Drone operators to
hold a private pilot’s license, since he holds a commercial pilot’s license. He
wasn’t too keen just these six UAS/Drone production companies being authorized
based solely on that appears to favoritism from the FAA. T.J. Diaz of XFlyFilms whose system was used in the production of the “Expendables III” movies
stated that “It’s the wild west in the motion picture industry”! His reasoning
is based upon the FAA not being specific on systems or air worthiness other
than the producers asking for them in their requests. As Brendan Schulman would
say “This is problematic”. I believe this is a good thing for the commercial
UAS/Drone industry but it troubles me to think that the FAA makes decisions
without thinking them through and considering the impact or legal liability. I
think this action is a move in the right direction but consequences because
their action were not well thought out is going to be decided by a judge.
Recommendation
I would like to promote David Copenhaver and his
professional capacities with NexGenNow. For over a year and a half David has
been hammering his company’s capabilities. His system is what Gene Robinson
uses to stream imagery live for search and rescue operations but he has been
part of a situational awareness solution that is all encompassing. Picture this
“A UAS/Drone pilot with a private pilot’s license gets a work order for a
survey job on a new housing development, specifying the scope of work, time and
location for the job. He logs onto a web-site that has his license information
as part of his membership registration. He types in the geographic area of the
job, goes to a drop down window to select the UAS/Drone system he is certified
on and the sensor or camera system that will be used, then he uploads the work
order via PDF. After de-confliction of the time and airspace he is e-mailed a
COA via PDF which he downloads and keeps in his pocket. While conducting the
operation a satellite will have the parameters of the operation and he will get
an online alert when the satellite detects an airplane or helicopter approaching
the UAS/Drone operation area so he can be aware and take appropriate action,
i.e. land the UAS/Drone or just be aware of where the plane and UAS/Drone are
located.” This capability is available right now and not only would it solve
the airspace concerns of airplane pilots. It would be a revenue generating system
and regulatory tool for the FAA.
Disruptive technology
The perceived problem with this common sense solution is
that it were adopted for the commercial airline industry to would have an
impact of cost savings and man-hours for air traffic control. Sure it would add
to safety and save money but that means less work for air traffic controllers.
That is a common reaction to the discussion of the use of UAS/Drone
commercialization. The ripple effect of the existing systems and applications
but what needs to be weighed is the increase of jobs and revenues that can be
realized for industries and workers that are not available now.
Wednesday, September 24, 2014
GUTC UAS/Drone professional registration
GUTC has developed a UAS/Drone professional database for the different projects both domestically and internationally. To better manage the professionals interested in employment on these projects please submit the information on your self and your company's capabilities through the GUTC registration page: http://www.globalutc.com/signup.htm
Sunday, September 21, 2014
Hazard Yet Forward
Phrase analysis
After the fall out of the 2008 market crash I heard a
retired economist and sociology professor state “We are going through a process
of Global Economic Reshuffling. All of the systems and processes we have grown
accustom and counted on for decades aren’t working anymore and everyone is
scrambling to find the new path to prosperity. There is going to be economic
equalization until we dump the old failed methods and systems and develop and
adopt new and reliable solutions”. This made me think about Social Security and
the over use of NPK in agriculture. Now recently I have heard the phrase “Root
Cause Failure Analysis” applied to data collection, storage and distribution. I
was just listing to the challenges with ISIS or ISIL and Iran. ISIS/ISIL are
Sunni and Iran is Shiite, mortal enemies. But Saudi Arabia is Sunni, why should
they have a concern of ISIS/ISIL? For the same reason the Assad regime is at
war with them, those regimes are monarchies with their origins from figured heads
propped up by the West, USA and Great Brittan. To find the Root Cause of this
issue you need to go back before Muhammad and Ishmael. The current challenge
with ISIS/ISIL goes back to the rise of Saddam Hussain a Sunni who being the
minority is Iraq but maintaining control through a brutal dictator. With the
ouster of Saddam and the election of Nouri al-Maliki a Shiite who bullied the
Sunnis. They sided with Al-Qaida to fight against Assad and now we have
ISIS/ISIL. The result of a failed system.
Going back to Social Security and the economy, the Fed
chairman Ben Bernanke has chosen to keep the Fad rate less than 1%. This is the
rate banks use to lend each other money overnight. It also effect the rates on
your bank accounts (Checking, savings and CDs). In 2009 an advisor to the Fed
explained to a group of advisors in San Diego that this was to push investment
into the stock market and when investor money grew enough they would start
hiring. I was explaining to my 17 year old son Collin that in November 2011 the
DOW hit a record 14,000 and now it is 17,279.74. I asked him if he could
understand “Why the economy seems to be lagging so much”? In asking him that
question it occurred to me that with all of the baby-boomers reaching
retirement age and more people will be taking money out of Social Security than
those who will be working and putting in to it. I explained to him that the
government is going to want those who are still working to make more money and
have their savings grow so they can afford to pay enough in taxes to support
those who are no longer working. A doomed solution to solve another failed
system.
Now when I apply this “Root Cause Failure Analysis” to the
UAS/Drone industry I see the FAA seems to be beholden to the established
defense contractors. Which are protecting their bottom line by limiting the
technology for commercial use by anyone other than what these companies are manufacturing?
As Brendan Schulman would say on an interview “It is problematic” for the FAA
to grant a COA for the systems developed by these manufactures strictly because
they were flown by the military in combat when there are new commercial systems
with the same capabilities for payload and duration of flight from 277% to 7,000%
less cost. These failed models cannot stand up to economic pressure. It didn’t
work in the financial markets when Charles Schwab introduced the discount
brokerage idea. It isn’t working in agriculture with algae blooms and dead
zones around the world causing water shortages due to the over use of chemical
based fertilizers like NPK and herbicides like Atrazine, it is not going to work with the UAS/Drone
industry with thousands of jobs that can be created for baby-boomers, gen-X and
Millennials.
Congressmen and Senators will be hearing from this industry
just like the silent majority was heard from in the early 1980s which pulled us
out of a similar economic time. I will end with a cry that has been passed
through my family for ages “Hazard Yet Forward”!
Saturday, September 20, 2014
Why UAS/Drones?
Where is the demand?
Why use an unmanned aerial system? Safety would be the first
reason, examples like firefighting, nuclear power plant inspections and oil
platform safety inspections. Then there is economy of effort, search and rescue
operations are the first thing that come to mind. The ease of launching and
recovering these systems is so easy, then there is the cost savings. The least
expensive cost for a helicopter is $1,700 per hour and $180 per hour for a Cessna.
You can get an experienced UAS/Drone pilot for under $100 per hour. The
technology is getting more affordable by the minute.
Where is the business?
Agriculture is the most obvious. In precision agriculture
the savings is being surgical in application of water, fertilizer and pesticides.
The ability to gather imagery from under the leaves of trees and plants cannot
be accomplished by any manned air craft or satellite. The next most obvious application for unmanned
aerial systems in geospatial, LiDAR and photogrammetry measuring everything from
property corners to algae and moss growing on a century’s old church. If a
surveyor can dominate their market by learning to use a handheld GSP and a
robotic surveyor scope, what could he do with a quad-rotor and a Pix4D system?
These are all great opportunities for UAS/Drone
professionals but where is the economic benefit for a city, county or state? If
this technology can accelerate the process of “Root cause failure analysis” for
everything from infestations like HLB the citrus greening disease, Laurel wilt,
pine wilt, oak wilt the emerald ash bore weevil. Going back to agriculture
which is the cause of dead zones in the rivers, streams, lakes and oceans but
also the algae blooms which cause a crisis in drinking water in Ohio, Minnesota
and California, not to mention Panama and Columbia. You don’t think
contaminated drinking water has a negative effect for regions with these
issues? UAS/Drone technology can find the affected areas that caused these
issues and do it more efficiently and cost effectively than manned aircraft or satellites.
Optimally combining these technologies measuredly. Using the right tool for the
job.
A satellite can detect a region where plants are effected of
infested but not a specific plant of tree. A manned aircraft is much more
effective in surveying a 200 square mile area than a UAS/Drone but when you
want to get greater than accuracy than 2 cm an UAS/Drone is going to do that
for you. It is going to be a lot easier and cost effective to put up a
quad-rotor for your specific construction site than to call for a fly over every
day.
Certain industries like movies and film have an obvious need
and benefit for the UAS/Drone technologies. Marketing for everything from amusement
parks, state and national parks, real-estate developments and single family
homes with a nice back yard or a pool. The quality of imagery and detail can’t
be duplicated with a plane, helicopter or boom camera.
Safety
Safety is the lever that justifies the draconian
restrictions of the FAA. It is the blanket excuse for freezing the commercial
UAS/Drone operations. So when there is benefit of safety for the use of UAS/Drone
use it is critical to emphasize the safety benefit above anything else. Operations
below 4,000 feet are too low to make a correction to prevent a crash with a helicopter
or bail out in a manned aircraft. Then there is the impact deferential between
a manned helicopter or airplane and a small UAS/Drone. This not only has to be
considered when planning on UAS/Drone operations but give it the first and
highest emphasis.
Monday, September 15, 2014
UAS/Drone pilots needed
GUTC is looking for experienced UAS/Drone pilots in Kansas and Missouri to fly architectural and construction projects earning $500 to $700 per day depending on experience, 20 to 30 shoots per month. Please contact Reuben Lowing (619) 313-1073.
Saturday, September 13, 2014
Stepping it up
In the short two weeks as New Business Director for XFly
Film. I have run across a disproportionate number of UAS professionals doing
cinematography, filming weddings, real-estate, local television newscasts and
commercials. I have found these UAS pilots have a desire to do more and provide
more services to increase their profits. GUTC has experience in seeking out
applications where UAS/Drone technology is beneficial either in cost savings,
safety or filling the void that cannot be filled with a surveyor or researcher
on the ground and to low or small an area to make sense using a manned aircraft
or helicopter.
GUTC has the resources to advise these UAS professionals to
be more than paid hobbyists. We are working with the leaders in airframe and
sensor technology as well as with experts in integration and data management
and processing. GUTC also has relationships with the end users who are looking
for professionals with capabilities with a wide range of expertise. GUTC is
actively looking for projects and professionals to put together and make
business happen. We have access to the most current technologies in the
industries for the UAS professionals and end-users.
Friday, September 12, 2014
I am looking for you
Commercial UAS/Drone
usage is illegal, really?
I have added up the UAS/Drone professionals I have direct
contact with is 25 and I am connected with over a thousand on Twitter. How is this?
The FAA has granted COA for the Mesa County Sheriff’s Department in Arizona to
fly the Tremble/Gate-wing XU5 to fly over the county dump. The University of
North Carolina has 13 current COAs. I have not heard of any UAS pilot being
harassed by the FAA when they have had authorization from the city or county,
parks department, port or the property owner who tasked them to perform operations.
Do they do these flights for free? Does the Mesa county Sheriff do his flying
over the dump for free, after working hours and weekends? Does it mean that you
have to be granted a COA in order to be paid to fly a UAS? Does the FAA have to
write up a certificate of authorization for pilots to fly manned aircraft? Do
these pilots need authorization to fly over private property or from the
government official who has authority over public property? It seems that the
only people who are restricted are those who are trying to follow the rules to
the letter.
Where are you?
I was at the grand opening of the CALUAS test center in
Inyokern California and I saw a gentleman intently focused on a presentation on
precision agriculture. I asked him “What is it that interests you about this
technology?” He went on to tell me about a women he knew that as a researcher
of bats, specifically the White Nose Bat Disease. Her husband was a pilot, she
would catch a bat and tag it with a beacon and turn it loose and her husband
would track it to the cave and she would go there and do her research. Now her
husband had passed away and this gentleman believed that these UAS/Drones could
do the job her husband used to do. I am looking for someone in Michigan or near
the Austin Texas areas, because these are where the leading research colleges
and universities are that study the white nose bat disease. Because it would be
unlikely to get permission from property owners the UAS/Drone to get a COA.
Then I have read several articles about safety inspectors
using quad-rotors to inspect oil platforms in the artic off of the cost of
Canada and the Nordic countries. I have heard that they are using them in the
Gulf of Mexico but nobody has come forward. The big excuse for not allowing the
commercial use of UAS/Drones is safety but using a quad-rotor for safety
inspections rather than having someone who is not a trained climber be a safety
issue not to allow it’s use?
I am aggressively looking for the use of UAS/Drones for
these applications.
Thursday, September 11, 2014
Surveys "R" us
Life beyond Pix4D
There is a
company in Rochester New York that I only thought of for multi-spectral
cameras, high quality multi-spectral cameras specifically designed for small
unmanned systems. On a conference call and I found out some things I didn’t know.
They are able to micronize these camera systems from 4.5 or 3.5lbs to 1/5lbs
with better accuracy than all of the other multi-spectral systems out there.
Then they started talking about photogrammetry systems out there. Then they
mentioned their ability to process the data within their hardware instead of
the cloud. This company is Fluxdata.
LiDAR
I posted an
article about Peru is using UAS/Drones on ruins and then I see one of my
contacts commented “Someone needs to send me there”. I looked up his profile
and saw some of his work and I called him off of his web-site and it was
already in my phone. He has another web-site promoting his LiDAR. I was just
talking with my business partner who commented that we didn’t have any connection
in the North Eastern United States and it just so happens this UAS professional
and his company is in Providence Road Island, Andy Trench and his companies are
XactMaps and Zoomvideo.
California Land Surveyors get smart on Drones
NexGen presentation
to California Land Surveyors Association
Last night David Copenhaver of NexGenNow briefed the
California Land Surveyors Association in San Diego last night and according to
Steve Heise the organization Vice President it was a big hit! The
representative from CalTrans stated “I am overwhelmed with all of the
possibilities”. There were those in the crowd that who had concerns that this
disruptive technology would jeopardize their livelihood by replacing them and
their jobs. David pointed out the increased demand for the new data that would
be available because of the UAS technology. It was a big hit. I arranged for
this presentation by connecting David Copenhaver and Steve Heise a long time
personal friend of mine.
Friday, August 29, 2014
Industry Ambassador
Valued consultants
After realizing the process where a government entity has to
sponsor a COA for any legitimate UAS/Drone operations I was looking for sources
to help Dr. Jiri Hulcr from the University of Florida to fund his research on
the Laurel wilt disease spread by the ambrosia beetle in the everglades and
avocado orchards. I discovered that the Florida avocado Growers Association has
lots of money and they turned me onto the National Parks Service and they are
doing all kinds of research and collecting all kinds of data. Then I found out
that they know nothing about Dr. Jiri Hulcr so I made an e-mail introduction to
Dr. Jiri Hulcr. In order for Dr. Jiri Hulcr to obtain a COA and obtain funding
we are going to have to convince the National Parks Service and possibly the
Florida Avocado Growers Association the benefits collecting data with UAS/Drone
technology. The data pertaining to cost for technology, pilot and sensors is a
huge appeal for the use of UAS for these type of operations.
Finding panthers
I connected George Sigler from Sky Warrior Inc. and
Ryan English of Skymotion Media to talk about George’s desires to incorporate
UAS training with his courses for basic FAA ground school where he has been
training navy pilots and NFOs since the end of Vietnam. He has a huge database
of NFOs who hold their civilian pilots license but they won’t qualify for their
commercial pilot’s license due less than perfect eyesight but they won’t have
any problem flying a UAS/Drone. Then George started talking about how he gets
requests to fly in the Everglades by the Florida Department of Fish and
Wildlife and different colleges and universities. Then he started talking about
one of his jobs is to track panthers in the everglades. They have radio
collars, if a cat doesn’t show movement for a period of 18 hours it is an
indicator of either the cat is dead or injured and they track young cats to put
collars on them and using tracking dogs. After growing up hunting raccoons in
Michigan I know that using a UAS/Drone with IR capabilities would be of benefit
for these types of operations and save a lot of stress on the panthers.
Good content
These applications make for interesting content for the
proposed UAS/Drone reality TV show. I am looking for similar application
pertaining to the Amphibious Predatory Migrator with alligators and pythons
crawling out of the Everglades into residential neighborhoods. I am also
looking to connect with those operators who are inspecting oil platforms in the
Gulf of Mexico.
They have Nationalized the UAS/Drone industry
They have nationalized
the UAS/Drone industry
Right away after being asked to find content for a UAS/Drone
reality show I have noticed that some people are having no problem getting
authorization and others are not. I heard James Williams the Manager of the FAA’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Integration
Office say “You can fly, it’s not
illegal, you just have to follow the guidelines” Then everyone is asking “What are these
guidelines?” What I discovered it that those who submit for Certificates of
Authorization and get approved are doing it on behalf of a government agency.
If you want to get it funded either there has to be money from which ever
government agency is sponsoring the COA or the private/commercial entity that desires
the research has to fund it through which ever government agency that is
sponsoring the COA. That in essence is Nationalization.
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