Michigan cancels plans to deliver game ball via drone after communicating with FAA
Michigan had plans to deliver the game ball for its Saturday afternoon contest against Utah via a drone.
No, really. An unmanned aircraft would have brought the ball to midfield before kickoff, but after communicating with the Federal Aviation Administration, Michigan halted those plans.
Bloomberg News is reporting that the school “backed down” from its plans after the FAA explained that a temporary flight restriction was put in place over the stadium during the game.
“The FAA promotes voluntary compliance by educating UAS operators how they can operate safely under current regulations and laws,” the FAA said in a statement.
The FAA does not permit commercial drone flights outside of Alaska, although pilots who fly drones recreationally can do so while following strict safety guidelines. Part of those guidelines includes avoiding large crowds. I think a crowd of over 100,000 fans at Michigan Stadium falls under that requirement unfortunately.
Even though the drone flight is canceled, part of Saturday’s pre-game festivities will include an homage to Michigan’s aerospace program, including a World War II bomber and other plane flyovers.
The game is set to kickoff at 3:30 p.m. ET.
For more Michigan news, visit TheWolverine.com.
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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
