Fear of Drones? New Concerns Emerge

While “dronaphobia” is not yet a “thing” or an entrant diagnosis in the DSM-5 Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, an increasing number of fear of drones cases have been cropping up in geographic pockets of sanity across America.

To that end, at the Commercial UAV Expo — the world’s largest conference on drones — meeting last week in Amsterdam, it was noted that unmanned flying vehicles increasingly used by governments, industry and individuals are not viewed favorably across the board by Americans. In fact, a strong majority have serious safety concerns about these flying objects. No matter what the emotion pro or con, however, Americans overwhelmingly expect drones to begin home deliveries in the next five to ten years.

A recent poll by TargetPoint found specific concerns over drones emerging as the hardware and technology prepares for testing “last mile” solutions for package deliveries.

• Americans expect drones to be more prevalent and currently trust the industry

o 70% expect home delivery in 5-10 years.

o 68% believe that commercial use over communities will be safe.

• Support for drones is soft

o 58% think drones are a good idea; 42% do not

o 51% support neighborhood deliveries; 49% think they are too dangerous.

• A strong majority is concerned about safety and drones

o 68% are concerned; only 7% are not concerned at all.

• An overwhelming majority expect something will go wrong and support regulation

o 82% believe commercial drones used for small scale and cargo  deliveries will cause a serious accident sooner or later.

o 71% have privacy concerns.

o 93% want some form of regulation.

• Chinese-made drones raise additional concerns

o 83% think security concerns about Chinese manufacturers are valid.

o 71% think Chinese made drones should be banned from US Government Agencies.

o 55% think Chinese made drones should be banned from US businesses and individuals.