The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has published a draft set of standards for drone operations. The drafts will be open for public consultation until January 21, 2019 and are expected to be adopted globally later next year.

This is the first set of four drone-related sets of standards. An additional three sets will look into technical specifications, manufacturing quality, and traffic management.

Most of the proposed standards are line with already existing drone legislation and regulations as well as common sense. The draft includes no-fly zones around airports and other sensitive locations. Geo-fencing technology is suggested to prevent drone flying over restricted areas. Other suggestions include flight logging, operator training as well as maintenance requirements.

There are also rules around privacy and data protection for operators and the draft standard suggests there should be a mandatory means of human intervention for all drone flights.

With drone traffic increasing substantially and drones frequently involved in air traffic incidents, more standards for both technology and operation procedures should be a step into the right direction and can help drive drone adoption further. More information is available on the ISO website.