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Move to OK commercial drone flights over people

WASHINGTON (AP) — A government-sponsored committee is recommending standards that could clear the way for commercial drone flights over populated areas and help speed the introduction of package delivery drones and other uses not yet possible, The Associated Press has learned.

The Federal Aviation Administration currently prohibits most commercial drone flights over populated areas, especially crowds. That ban frustrates a host of industries that want to take advantage of the technology.

"Every TV station in the country wants one, but they can't be limited to flying in the middle of nowhere because there's no news in the middle of nowhere," said Jim Williams, a former head of FAA's drone office who now advises the industry for Dentons, athn international law firm.

 

Cellular network providers also want to loosen restrictions so drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles, can inspect cell towers, which often are in urban areas. Amazon's vision for package deliveries entails drones winging their way over city and suburban neighborhoods.

Full article: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/f23e06137ac1406eaa16342ebb772c6f/apnewsbreak-move-ok-commercial-drone-flights-over-people

911 System Done in by a Malfunctioning Air Conditioner

Lawmakers want answers about how this could occur after county spent tens of millions of dollars 911 equipment, maintenance, training and testing.

Sandra Tan, The Buffalo News, N.Y. | March 31, 2016

Erie County’s 911 system shut down for nearly four hours Wednesday morning – done in by a malfunctioning air conditioner.

And the failures didn’t stop there. The back-up system didn’t work either, and more than half an hour passed before anyone realized it. County dispatchers headed to a secondary location in Cheektowaga, only to discover that emergency calls that were supposed to be diverted there weren’t coming in.

Now lawmakers want answers about how this could occur after spending tens of millions of dollars in recent years on 911 equipment, maintenance, training and testing.

Full article: : http://www.emergencymgmt.com/disaster/Erie-County-officials-seek-answers-after-911-failure.html

Bob Janusaitis has been accepted in the Executive Master of Public Service Administration at the Bush School of Government and Public Service

 

March 22, 2016 Edmonton,, Alberta, Canada

Bob Janusaitis has been accepted in the Executive Master of Public Service Administration at the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University. Bob will begin the inaugural program in the summer of 2016.

China, Russia Planning Space Attacks on U.S. Satellites

Critical space infrastructure faces crippling missile strikes, small satellites, lasers.

 

China and Russia are preparing to attack and disrupt critical U.S. military and intelligence satellites in a future conflict with crippling space missile, maneuvering satellite, and laser attacks, senior Pentagon and intelligence officials told Congress on Tuesday.

Air Force Gen. John Hyten, commander of the Air Force Space Command, said the threat to U.S. space systems has reached a new tipping point, and after years of post-Cold War stagnation foreign states are focused on curbing U.S. space systems.

 

Full article: http://freebeacon.com/national-security/china-russia-planning-space-attacks-on-u-s-satellites/

DOJ expected to charge 5 Iranians in 2013 hacking of New York dam

The Department of Justice is expected to announce charges against up to five Iranians believed to be tied to the 2013 hacking of a New York dam, a law enforcement source told Fox News.

The DOJ is expected to make the announcement sometime in the coming days, according to the source. The individuals are believed to have connections within the Iranian government.

The hackers allegedly infiltrated the control system of the Bowman Ave Dam in Rye Brook, N.Y., which is about 20 miles outside New York City, The Wall Street Journal reported at the time. The breach raised fears of the vulnerabilities of the United States' infrastructure to foreign hackers. It also came at a time that the Iranians were on the offensive in attacking U.S. banks.

Full article: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/03/10/doj-expected-to-charge-5-iranians-in-2013-hacking-new-york-dam.html?intcmp=hpbt2

CYBERCOM says cyberattacks on infrastructure coming

Gen. Joseph L. Votel (left), head of the Special Operations Command, has been nominated to become the commander of U.S. Central Command, which oversees military operations in Iraq and Syria against the Islamic State group. Lt. Gen. Raymond A. Thomas.

The commander of the U.S. Cyber Command warned last week that he expects a major cyberattack on critical infrastructure in the United States in the future.

“It is only a matter of the ‘when,’ not the ‘if’ we’re going to see a nation-state, group or actor engage in destructive behavior against critical infrastructure in the United States,” Adm. Mike Rogers, Cyber Command chief and director of the National Security Agency, warned in a speech March 2.

Full article: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/mar/9/inside-the-ring-infrastructure-cyberattacks/?page=all#pagebreak

 

Two Houston dams among 'extremely high risk'

Photo: Mayra Beltran - Evelyn Merz, of the Sierra Club, walks the banks of the dam at Addicks Reservoir on the south side of the dam, which releases water into Buffalo Bayou in Houston.

On a typical day near Houston's Barker and Addicks reservoirs, it's quite beautiful in the 26,000-acre recreational green space.

But then it rains.

The two dams are among six in the nation deemed "extremely high risk" by the US Army Corps of Engineers, according to Houston Public Media. They are located on either side of the Katy Freeway at Highway 6.

Full article: http://www.chron.com/houston/article/Two-Houston-dams-among-extremely-high-risk-6875135.php?cmpid=fb-mobile

North Korea's arsenal raises the stakes for US grid security: Experts

North Korea, the country whose nuclear ambitions have been the fulcrum of global security concerns for more than a decade, may be a threat in more ways than one.

Concerns about Pyongyang's nuclear arsenal have largely revolved around whether the country could eventually launch a warhead at neighboring South Korea, or even the United States itself. Yet the country's recent actions have converged with percolating fears about the U.S.'s antiquated power grid—which a growing number of observers say is vulnerable to asymmetric threats.

Full article: http://www.cnbc.com/2016/02/20/north-koreas-arsenal-raises-the-stakes-for-us-grid-security-experts.html

Unmanned Aircraft Systems Industry Experts and Major Firms Are Set to Present at the Texas UAS Summit & Expo

Produced by UAS Magazine, Lone Star UAS Test Site and Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service (TEEX); Texas UAS Summit Will Provide Attendees With a Comprehensive Overview of the Current State of the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Industry

AUSTIN, TX--(Marketwired - Feb 16, 2016) - UAS Magazine announced this week the preliminary agenda for the Texas UAS Summit & Expo, a premier unmanned aircraft systems event produced by UAS Magazine. Taking place March 29-31, 2016 in Austin, Texas, the agenda, focused on both small and large unmanned aircraft systems -- features how Texas is shaping the industry. Produced in collaboration with the expert team from the Lone Star UAS Test Site, the two-day event will explain and reveal the cutting-edge research, commercial operation successes and end-user opportunities present in Texas and the region. The event will unite commercial manufacturers and operators, researchers, payload providers, platform designers, 333 exempt entities and multiple leaders spearheading UAS expansion in Texas and beyond.

Full article: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/unmanned-aircraft-systems-industry-experts-180100502.html

 

Bringing UAS to American Skies

The Lone Star UAS Center of Excellence & Innovation (LSUASC), founded at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi in 2013, was established in response to an FAA initiative to integrate UAS into the national airspace. LSUASC is composed of a team of highly engaged researchers, entrepreneurs and aviation industry professionals.

Full article: http://lsuasc.tamucc.edu/