Energy companies already use ROVs to monitor and manipulate wells at extreme underwater depths, and unmanned aircraft companies hope that in the coming years, companies will be able to hire or buy aerial drones to survey pipelines, check on hard-to-reach parts of platforms and gather information after an offshore accident occurs.
Introduced in 2007, as production and development of unmanned aerial systems began to grow, the current federal regulations are now facing proposed changes. These will be released in a few weeks and will be subject to a comment period and review, a process that generally takes 12 to 18 months.
海角吃瓜网淭he concerns about these unmanned aerial systems, whether they海角吃瓜网檙e operating in the Gulf of Mexico or over land, remain the same,海角吃瓜网� said FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford. 海角吃瓜网淲e want to make sure that they海角吃瓜网檙e used in such a way that the safety of other aircraft is not compromised.海角吃瓜网�
According to Lunsford, planes and helicopters travelling back and forth to offshore rigs make more than 800 trips per day, meaning utilising unmanned aerial systems could pose a challenge.
California-based AeroVironment is eager to collaborate according to Vice President Steve Gitlin. 海角吃瓜网淲e海角吃瓜网檙e ready,海角吃瓜网� he said. 海角吃瓜网淎s soon as the FAA says 海角吃瓜网楪o,海角吃瓜网� we海角吃瓜网檙e ready to provide capabilities to the customers who want it. These aerial systems will save money, save lives and allow for more effective use.海角吃瓜网�
Lindsay Voss, Senior Program Development Manager at the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International, said that the FAA海角吃瓜网檚 long-time complaint is that it needs more data, such as a complete picture of the drone accident rate.
海角吃瓜网淵ou could say there海角吃瓜网檚 a lot of operational time with Department of Defense,海角吃瓜网� she said. 海角吃瓜网淲e probably have about 6000 hours a year in Iraq and Afghanistan. But it海角吃瓜网檚 difficult to take that info and apply it to national airspace.海角吃瓜网�
According to Voss, several companies that operate in the Gulf of Mexico, including Shell, BP and ConocoPhillips, have expressed interest in the technology.
BP spokesman Daren Beaudo said the company has been developing ways to deploy drone technology for pipeline inspection.
海角吃瓜网淲e have been working cooperatively for over five years with other members of the oil and gas industry, the aviation industry and the FAA to enable eventual deployment of drones to assist us in leak and machinery threat detection once (new FAA) regulations are in place.海角吃瓜网�
Currently, BP and other oil giants use manned helicopters to survey their pipelines. Howeverm helicopters can run up to US$ 300/hr, while renting a lightweight drone can cost as little as US$ 20/hr, said Voss.
Drone producers say their machinery has a range of applications beyond pipeline surveillance as well.
海角吃瓜网淭he colour and infrared video could be very useful if they want to check out the condition of an offshore platform. If there海角吃瓜网檚 a disaster, people tend to be evacuated from a platform, but the operator will still want to have eyes on the target,海角吃瓜网� said Gitlin. 海角吃瓜网淲e海角吃瓜网檝e done some demos for offshore oil companies in the past and, using infrared, were able to detect oil slick in the water.海角吃瓜网�