Airport UAS response plans
The UAS response plan that Part 139 certificated airports must hold in the Airport Certification Manual, and keeping it current as FAA detection and mitigation policy develops.
This is the most straightforwardly defined work in the segment: a required document, in a required manual, with an enumerable list of airports that must hold one.
The reason it needs attention is that the federal framework around airport detection and mitigation has not settled. A plan written against the position of two years ago describes a world that has since changed.
Why this is live now
- The FAA requires every Part 139 certificated airport to include an approved UAS response plan in its Airport Certification Manual.
- The FAA has been directed, with DHS and DOJ, to develop a plan for counter-UAS operations at US airports and to deploy detection at large hub, medium hub and three cargo mega hub airports.
- Because federal policy in this area is still moving, a plan approved against an earlier position needs periodic revision rather than one-off drafting.
Who this is for
- Part 139 certificated airport operators
- Airport operations and safety managers
- Airport police and public safety units
- Airport consultants carrying certification manual work
What we would do
Analysis and advisory work. We have no deployed installations in this segment and do not imply otherwise.
- Reviewing an existing response plan against current FAA expectations
- Drafting or revising the plan section for inclusion in the certification manual
- Setting out the notification and coordination sequence for a UAS event affecting operations
- Advising on what a detection deployment would and would not change in the plan
FAQ
▸Is a response plan the same as buying a detection system?
No, and conflating the two is the common mistake. The plan is a required document describing how the airport responds when operations are interrupted or manned traffic is put at risk. It is mandatory. A detection system is a capability an airport may or may not have, and the plan has to work either way.
▸Can an airport deploy detection equipment on its own initiative?
Detection raises questions the FAA takes a specific interest in at airports, particularly where equipment might affect navigation or communications, and the agency has tested detection systems in the airport environment for that reason. It is not a purchase to make first and clear afterwards.
▸How often should the plan be revisited?
Whenever the federal position moves materially, and the position has moved more than once since 2024. A plan is a live document here rather than a one-off submission.