FAA Administrator Marion C. Blakey says a "big step" was made last month

toward integrating unmanned aircraft (UA) into the National Airspace System when the FAA issued the first airworthiness certificate for a commercial unmanned aircraft. But instead of handing out certificates for individual projects, AOPA thinks UAs should meet the same
certification and operational standards as piloted aircraft, and that they need to fit

into the existing airspace system without any negative effects on
general aviation operations. Called the Altair, the newly certified aircraft is a high-altitude research version of the military Predator B built by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems of San Diego. It has an 86-foot wingspan, carries 3,000 pounds of fuel, and can fly up to 52,000 feet with its Honeywell turboprop engine. The Experimental-category
airworthiness certificate requires the Altair to be operated only in good weather and be under the supervision of a pilot and observer who may be located on the ground or in a chase-plane. The airworthiness certificate also means

the Altair, developed at NASA Dryden Flight Research Center, can operate

above previously used test altitudes and can expand its geographic operations.