Dominicana Innova and National Congress of Drones starts
Santo Domingo.- The general director interim of the Instituto Dominicano de Aviación Civil (Idac), Héctor Porcella, assured that unmanned aircraft, also known as drones, are already part of the present time in the development of modern aviation.
“The surveillance in the use of such aircraft and the application of regulations in their operations are some of the challenges we face, but at the same time we have formed a working table to develop the corresponding strategies,” said Porcella during his participation as an exhibitor at the National Congress of Drones at the second edition of the Dominican Innova Week which started this Tuesday 18 in Santo Domingo.
He explained that the program for updating regulations developed by the IDAC on this new technological phenomenon is accommodating a wide range of unmanned aircraft, “from small or so-called mini drones for recreational use, and those of commercial operation, photogrammetry or cinematography, and those for agricultural use…And, at the pace of the technological advances we are experiencing, it is probably that very soon we will be taking the first steps in formulating a protocol for urban air mobility, when this system can be used to offer transport services as air taxis.”
He recalled that a few months ago he signed on behalf of Idac an important agreement with the Dominican Agribusiness Board (Junta Agroempresarial Dominicana) to support agricultural producers through a training program in the use of drones.
Porcella affirmed that Idac’s responsibility is to ensure operational safety with the highest international standards in order to guarantee the adequate development of all activities associated to civil aviation, under the scheme of laws, regulations and agreements that govern such sector.
He indicated that the second version of Dominicana Innova coincides with a campaign recently initiated by Idac to promote the responsible use of such devices, and that drone users and operators have the option of permanently finding specific guidance on the use of this equipment on the Idac institutional portal.
“We are heading in the right direction: our flight standards, air navigation and operational surveillance personnel are being trainned by qualified instructors on this type of standards, both from the European Aviation Safety Agency (Easa) and advisors from Icao in the implementation of USA iPack packages, responsible for guiding our personnel to carry out the necessary transformations”, Porcella said.
On the opening day of the event, the Idac, through the Academia Superior de Ciencias Aeronáuticas (Asca), put into service a stand to address the concerns of users about registration and licensing of drones.
Opening of Dominican Innova
The opening ceremony was attended by Porcella, along with the general director of the Government Office of Information and Communication Technologies (Ogtic) Bartolomé Pujals, the President of the Santo Domingo Cyber Park, Eddy Martínez Manzueta, and the executive director of the Drone Innovation Center, Orlando Pérez, among other experts.
The event dedicated to the promotion of new technologies also includes the “First Innova Dominican University Innovation Fair”, aimed to promote an innovative and entrepreneurial culture, encouraging the development of products and services that generate added value to the productive process of the country and that respond to real needs in the socioeconomic environment.
Innova 2023 takes place at the Palacio del Cine of Agora Mall, and is sponsored by the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology, the Directorate of Innovation and Technology Transfer, along with the Government Office of Information and Communication Technologies (Ogtic), the Cabinet of Innovation and 53 higher education institutions.
