IPSA Webinar Week - FAA Considerations for Getting Operational with UAS in Public Safety

Charles Werner,

Chair of the IPSA's UAS Committee

Charles L. Werner (Charlottesville Fire Chief Ret.- Emeritus)- Charles Werner is presently serving as the Chair of the IPSA’s UAS Committee. He is acting Deputy State Coordinator and Senior Advisor with the Virginia Department of Emergency Management. He presently advises on Rail Responder Apps, Unmanned Aircraft Systems, FirstNet, NG911, Situational Awareness, GIS and interoperability. Chief Werner serves on the CSX Rail Respond Steering Committee and the Association of American Railroads Public Safety Rail Advisory Committee. Chief Werner is also the lead organizer and chair for the National Council on Public Safety UAS and is a certified Part 107 Remote Pilot with the Albemarle County Sheriff's Search and Rescue Team. Charles also serves on the NPSTC UAS Working Group and the Metro Washington COG UAS Working Group.

John Meehan,

FAA, Management & Program Analyst/Industry Liaison

John is a Management & Program Analyst and Industry Liaison in the Federal Aviation Administration’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration Team, located at FAA Headquarters in Washington, DC. In this role, John provides technical support, subject matter expertise, and performs detailed research in response to inquiries from within the agency, other agencies, industry, Congress and the general public, and coordinates responses with appropriate FAA personnel. He also provides subject matter expertise in the development of concepts, policies, standards, procedures and guidance related to the safe integration of UAS into the NAS.

John is a graduate of West Point and former US Army Helicopter Instructor Pilot and served just over 5 years in the Army as an Aviation Officer before getting his MBA from Boston College and joining private industry, mostly in International Sales and General Management positions.  He has worked at three Aircraft OEMs and run Fixed Base Operations at Stewart Airport in New York and Washington Dulles Airport in Virginia. Prior to joining the FAA, John was most recently the Chief Operating Officer and Head of Global Sales at Wyvern Ltd, an aviation risk management company based in Yardley, PA. John holds a Commercial Pilot Certificate with Instrument rating rotary wing, a Private Pilot Rating with Instrument rating, single engine land airplane, and a UAS Remote Pilot Certificate.

Dave Bear,

FAA, Aviation Safety Inspector, Public Aircraft Operations Subject Matter Expert

Dave held several line pilot and airline management positions from 1987-2005. He started with the Federal Aviation Administration in 2006, spending the first ten years as a Principal Operations Inspector with a Flight Standards District Office. Dave current works as a Public Aircraft Operations Subject Matter Expert for the General Aviation and Commercial Division at the FAA’s Washington DC office. He assists other FAA offices in educational outreach and regulatory issues with key stakeholders such as Public Aircraft Operators (Law Enforcement, 1st Responders, Public Health, etc). Dave holds an Airline Transport Pilot, Gold Seal Flight Instructor and UAS Remote Pilot certificates and began flying in 1978.

Steve Pansky,

SME/Contractor FAA, UAS Tactical Operations Emerging Technologies Team

As a Senior Air Traffic Control Analyst for the past seven years, Steve has been the subject matter expert on all matters relating to the Certificate of Waiver/Authorization (COA) approval for unmanned Aircraft Systems by Federal, State, County, and City law enforcement/Fire and First Responder agencies and the coordination of air traffic requirements for manufactures applying for Special Airworthiness Certificates- Experimental Category.