Summary: Like it or not, unmanned aircraft are fast becoming an important part of the economy. Amazon and Google at this moment are developing plans for autonomous delivery, and the control systems for the drones they plan to have aloft. But they are not operating in a vacuum. The FAA and NASA are deep into research on how drones will operate safely in U.S. airspace. Parimal Kopardekar, NASA's senior technologist for air transportation systems, spoke about it on Federal Drive with Tom Temin.
