Steve Edgar of Empire Unmanned appointed to drone rulemaking committee

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Steve Edgar, co-founder of the drone company Empire Unmanned in Hayden, has been appointed to a federal drone rulemaking committee.

Edgar was appointed to the UAS, or unmanned aircraft systems, committee by the Federal Aviation Administration’s unmanned aircraft systems integration office. He will help oversee regulations and policies regarding the flight of unmanned aerial vehicles in higher elevations of federally regulated airspace in the U.S.

Edgar has more than 40 years of aviation experience, and has operated and instructed in 17 types of aircraft including single-seat military fighter aircraft and wide-body commercial aircraft. He has flown the Boeing 737, Airbus 320/319, B757-767 and B777, as well as the RQ-4 Global Hawk Unmanned Aircraft System in support of combat troops in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya. In addition, Edgar has flown unmanned aircraft humanitarian missions in Japan and North America.

A veteran of the 1991 Gulf War, Edgar flew the F-117A Stealth fighter on combat missions in Iraq and Kuwait. He has amassed more than 11,000 flight hours over the course of his aviation career. He is also an FAA-rated air traffic controller in both tower and radar operations, and has served in appointed and elected leadership roles in private, union, government, and military organizations.