Securing America: Expanding Drone Programs

Drones are once again grabbing headlines.  A senior U.S. official tells FOX News that the CIA may eventually relinquish operational control of its devices overseas amid increasing concern about how the unmanned vehicles might be used inside the country.

FOX’s Catherine Herridge reports from Washington in our ongoing series on national security:

Securing America.

With the FAA projecting more than 10,000 licensed drone operating systems by 2017, witnesses say the benefits range from tracking forest fires to reconstructing crime scenes and finding missing children – for as little as $25/hour.  And while the financial benefits are obvious, there are bipartisan warnings that the case law is non-existent – citing a 25-year-old Supreme Court ruling.  

Lawmakers are told the FAA now bans the commercial use of drones.  With the ban set to be relaxed in 2015, drone advocates say the technology should be embraced.  But privacy advocates counter that the current hand-wringing over mini-drones will soon be eclipsed.

In Washington, Catherine Herridge, FOX News Radio.