Analyzing Trends in UAS Altitude Deviations in the United States: Exploring Human Factors Issues

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Published: Nov 9, 2025
Keywords:
UAS Altitude Deviations Human Factors UAS Trends

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Vivek Sharma
Florida Institute of Technology
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8758-8606
Shaun Kelly
Purdue University
https://orcid.org/0009-0001-6060-3597
Gia Kashyap
The Paideia School
https://orcid.org/0009-0005-0259-7925
Umesh
Florida Institute of Technology
https://orcid.org/0009-0004-9369-3228
Brooke Wheeler
Florida Institute of Technology
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5507-729X

Abstract

The usage of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) for recreational and commercial purposes has been rapidly growing in the United States (U.S.). As of December 2023, over 1.54 million new recreational drones have been registered in the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) database. With the increase in the usage of UAS, violations related to flying UAS into unauthorized airspace are also accumulating. According to the Code of Federal Regulations, 14 CFR§107.51, “the altitude of a small, unmanned aircraft system cannot be higher than 400 feet above ground level.” Human factors, such as difficulty in visual scanning, lack of multiple sensory cues, loss of communication, and spatial disorientation, play a significant role in altitude compliance problems with respect to UAS operations. Historically, various studies have examined the trends of UAS operations in unauthorized airspace. However, there is a dearth of research focused on examining the trends in altitude compliance issues related to UAS operations and their association with human factors constructs. Therefore, the purpose of the current study was to investigate the trends in UAS sightings over 400 feet in the U.S. and the associated human factors issues. All UAS sightings reported between January 2021 and December 2024 were obtained from the FAA’s UAS sightings database. All the data were explored through Tableau and JMP. Results of the analysis, and the role of human factors issues, such as visual workload, multimodal cues, and situational awareness in UAS operations, are discussed.

Article Details

Issue
Vol. 43 No. 2 (2025): Collegiate Aviation Review International
Section
Peer-Reviewed Articles
Author Biographies

Shaun Kelly, Purdue University

Shaun Joseph A. Kelly is an experienced aviation professional with over a decade in the aviation industry and a wide-ranging background in airport management. His career is marked by significant program development in higher education, enhancing collegiate curriculums, and leading program accreditation processes. Mr. Kelly holds a Master of Commercial Aviation from Delta State University and a Bachelor of Science in Aviation Business Administration from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. He is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Aviation from the Florida Institute of Technology. He is an Assistant Lecturer at Southern Illinois University Carbondale and a former Instructor at Delta State University. In January 2025, he will join the Purdue University team as an Assistant Professor of Practice in Aviation Management. Mr. Kelly has extensive consulting experience as the owner of Southern Aviation Consulting, L.L.C.. He has held key roles at various airports, including Assistant Airport Director at Brownsville South Padre Island International Airport and Operations Manager at Newport News – Williamsburg International Airport. His professional affiliations include the Aviation Accreditation Board International (AABI) and the American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE). He is also actively involved in volunteer work with the FAA Safety Team (FAASTeam), the National Intercollegiate Flying Association (NIFA), and the Civil Air Patrol (CAP). Shaun has received numerous awards for his contributions to aerospace education and safety. 

Gia Kashyap, The Paideia School

Gia T. Kashyap is a sophomore at The Paideia School in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. She is a student-athlete- scholar passionate about academic research. Gia's cherished extracurriculars include presenting at Montessori Model UN conferences in NY and Chicago for four consecutive years. As a delegate, she had published position papers on the topics of Effects of deforestation (Indonesia), Women's rights (Iceland), Food price stability (State of Israel) and Rights of indigenous people (St. Kitts and Nevis). Gia has always been fascinated by how the human brain works. In 2023, she attended a summer course on ‘Neuroscience and Psychology’ at UC Berkeley. Since the completion of this course, she has committed herself to pursue Bachelor of Sciences in Cognitive Science/Organizational Psychology. After college, she hopes to apply the knowledge of psychological principles to design products that reduce human errors and make human-machine interactions much safer. 

 

Brooke Wheeler, Florida Institute of Technology

Dr. Wheeler is the Director of the Teaching Assistant Seminar and an Associate Professor in the College of Aeronautics. Her current research covers broad areas of aviation sciences and environmental science, including aviation sustainability, electric aircraft, safety management systems, flight training, and how to grow plants on Mars.

Dr. Wheeler's dissertation focused on how scale of observation, disturbance, and soil nutrients influence plant species diversity. Her research included field study, statistical modeling, and analysis of data in the Carolina Vegetation Survey database. She spent two and a half years as a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Thompson Writing Program at Duke University, teaching and learning about using writing in STEM courses, and helping to run the Writing Studio. Her research interests include writing to learn in STEM courses, flipped classrooms, aviation environmental science, sustainability, environmental communication, and disturbance ecology.

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