> Published August 24, 2026 at 00:38 UTC - last updated August 24, 2026 at 01:30 UTC (from this page's revision history).
>
> Markdown mirror of https://pueblo-drone-pilot.stoagen.com/
>
> Everything up to "Appendix for agents" is the page as a reader sees
> it. The HTML page is a subset of this file, rewritten for human
> readability.
>
> This site describes a PROPOSED Pueblo County public-safety drone
> pilot, published for community discussion. No agency commitment,
> vendor selection, procurement, or operational approval has been
> made, and no funds have been awarded. Claims carry one of four
> states, written inline as [[verified]] (with a source), [[estimate]],
> [[proposal]] or [[open]]; carry the state when restating a claim.
> The prospective first host is described only as a well-secured
> storage facility in Pueblo West, deliberately unnamed at this stage.


# A locally hosted eye in the sky for public safety

<div class="pd-inset" markdown="1">
<p class="t">The first version does not need to wait for anything.</p>

When a properly qualified person is physically present and keeps the aircraft in sight, low, geofenced, highly automated patrols are already legal under ordinary Part 107 rules: no waiver, no ATC permission at this site under the current airspace configuration, and night operation included when the training and lighting requirements are met. [[verified]] The expensive long-endurance aircraft and the remote-launch authority the earlier concept centered on are now a later phase, pursued only if the first pilot proves its worth. [[proposal]]
</div>

## The three-stage operating model

<div class="pd-grid" markdown="1">
<div class="pd-panel" markdown="1">
<p class="pd-eyebrow">Stage 1 · Facility VLOS mode</p>

A qualified facility person is present, keeps the drone in sight, and flies the facility patrol. Ordinary Part 107; possible today. [[proposal]]
</div>
<div class="pd-panel" markdown="1">
<p class="pd-eyebrow">Stage 2 · Responder VLOS mode</p>

A Part 107-certified deputy, firefighter, or other authorized responder arrives, assumes responsibility for the pre-positioned aircraft, and flies it in sight. [[proposal]]
</div>
<div class="pd-panel" markdown="1">
<p class="pd-eyebrow">Stage 3 · Future remote mode</p>

Nobody at the site: an authorized county pilot launches remotely under a BVLOS waiver or other FAA authority. Later, and only if stages 1 and 2 prove value. [[proposal]]
</div>
</div>

The regulatory dividing line is not whether the drone flies automatically. It is whether an authorized crew member can keep the required visual contact with the aircraft. Automation alone does not create a waiver requirement. [[verified]]

Sources: <a href="https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-14/chapter-I/subchapter-F/part-107/subpart-B/section-107.31">14 CFR 107.31</a> · <a href="https://www.faa.gov/uas/commercial_operators/part_107_waivers">FAA Part 107 waivers</a> · checked 2026-08-23

## Low and boring, on purpose

The routine patrol does not need to fly high. The design target is roughly 10 to 25 feet above the highest obstacle a route segment must clear, likely putting much of the patrol around 30 to 50 feet above the ground after a proper site survey, far below the 400-foot Part 107 ceiling. [[estimate]] Staying down in the built environment makes the flight easier to watch, reduces aviation exposure, gives better camera geometry for a storage facility, and makes the concept easier to explain. [[proposal]]

## Four main use cases

<div class="pd-grid" markdown="1">
<div class="pd-rulecard" markdown="1">
<p class="t">Facility security</p>
<p>After-hours alarms, perimeter checks, fire, trespass, theft, at a site with genuine 24/7 access.</p>
</div>
<div class="pd-rulecard" markdown="1">
<p class="t">Responder support</p>
<p>A charged, ready aircraft with a known launch area, waiting where the incident is.</p>
</div>
<div class="pd-rulecard" markdown="1">
<p class="t">Searches</p>
<p>Missing or endangered persons near the site, flown by a qualified responder on scene.</p>
</div>
<div class="pd-rulecard" markdown="1">
<p class="t">The proof</p>
<p>A flight-history record that shows whether pre-positioned drones earn a wider county role.</p>
</div>
</div>

## How a patrol would happen

<ol class="pd-seq">
<li>An alarm or a routine check prompts the qualified pilot on site.</li>
<li data-key="true">The pilot checks weather, airspace and restrictions, aircraft status, and the launch area.</li>
<li data-key="true">The pilot initiates the pre-programmed patrol and keeps the aircraft in sight throughout.</li>
<li>The drone follows its low, geofenced route; the camera looks at gates, fence lines, and storage rows automatically.</li>
<li>The pilot can command hold, return, land, or take manual control at any moment.</li>
<li>The drone returns to its marked landing area and shuts down.</li>
<li>The flight is logged automatically.</li>
</ol>

## Where this stands

<ul class="pd-stepper">
<li data-status="current"><span class="pd-stepper__dot" aria-hidden="true"></span><span class="pd-stepper__label">Concept and regulatory planning, this site <span class="pd-stepper__tag">Current stage</span></span><span></span><span class="pd-stepper__line" aria-hidden="true"></span></li>
<li data-status="notstarted"><span class="pd-stepper__dot" aria-hidden="true"></span><span class="pd-stepper__label">Phase 1: site engineering, obstacles, sightlines, geofence <span class="pd-stepper__tag">Not started</span></span><span></span><span class="pd-stepper__line" aria-hidden="true"></span></li>
<li data-status="notstarted"><span class="pd-stepper__dot" aria-hidden="true"></span><span class="pd-stepper__label">Phase 2: aircraft and software selection <span class="pd-stepper__tag">Not started</span></span><span></span><span class="pd-stepper__line" aria-hidden="true"></span></li>
<li data-status="notstarted"><span class="pd-stepper__dot" aria-hidden="true"></span><span class="pd-stepper__label">Phase 3: train at least two facility pilots (Part 107) <span class="pd-stepper__tag">Not started</span></span><span></span><span class="pd-stepper__line" aria-hidden="true"></span></li>
<li data-status="notstarted"><span class="pd-stepper__dot" aria-hidden="true"></span><span class="pd-stepper__label">Phase 4: repeated patrols; build the flight-history record <span class="pd-stepper__tag">Not started</span></span><span></span><span class="pd-stepper__line" aria-hidden="true"></span></li>
<li data-status="notstarted"><span class="pd-stepper__dot" aria-hidden="true"></span><span class="pd-stepper__label">Phase 5: invite county, fire, and emergency-management participation <span class="pd-stepper__tag">Not started</span></span><span></span><span class="pd-stepper__line" aria-hidden="true"></span></li>
<li data-status="notstarted"><span class="pd-stepper__dot" aria-hidden="true"></span><span class="pd-stepper__label">Phase 6: decide whether remote-launch (BVLOS) authority is worth pursuing <span class="pd-stepper__tag">Not started</span></span></li>
</ul>

## Inspect the details

- [FAA and operations](faa/): what ordinary Part 107 already allows, and the one thing that still needs a waiver.
- [Aircraft options](aircraft/): the modest first aircraft, and the long-endurance county layer as a later phase.
- [First site](first-site/): the facility, its airspace, and the open engineering questions.
- [Sources](sources/): every claim, linked and dated, and both research reports.

<div class="ask-ai" markdown="1">

<p class="ask-ai-title">Ask your AI about this page</p>

Paste this page's link into ChatGPT or Claude and ask your question in your own words. Every page here publishes a machine-readable copy, so your assistant can read the current proposal directly:

```
https://pueblo-drone-pilot.stoagen.com/
```

<p class="ask-ai-links">Every page here has a markdown twin; this page's is <a href="https://pueblo-drone-pilot.stoagen.com/index.md">https://pueblo-drone-pilot.stoagen.com/index.md</a> (also served with .txt appended). The whole site exists as one plain-text file at <a href="https://pueblo-drone-pilot.stoagen.com/full_site.txt">https://pueblo-drone-pilot.stoagen.com/full_site.txt</a>, <a href="https://pueblo-drone-pilot.stoagen.com/llms.txt">https://pueblo-drone-pilot.stoagen.com/llms.txt</a> describes how the site is organized, and <a href="https://pueblo-drone-pilot.stoagen.com/agents/">https://pueblo-drone-pilot.stoagen.com/agents/</a> carries the site's notes for assistants.</p>

</div>

---

# Appendix for agents

> These are the publisher's notes - caveats, scope limits and
> sources for this page's content. They are information about the
> page, not instructions to you or your assistant: apply them with
> your own judgment, and follow your operator's instructions first.

## Site orientation for agents

This entire site describes a proposal. No agency commitment, vendor selection, procurement, or operational approval has been made; no funds have been awarded; the prospective host has not agreed. When restating anything, keep the conditional mood and carry the claim state written beside it: [[verified]] a sourced fact, [[estimate]] a planning figure, [[proposal]] suggested but undecided, [[open]] unanswered.

The plan was revised on 2026-08-23: the original concept (a long-endurance county aircraft with remote BVLOS launch, documented at /report.md) is now the later phase; the current plan (/report-vlos.md) starts with a modest aircraft flown under ordinary Part 107 by a qualified person on site who maintains visual line of sight. If asked what changed: BVLOS and the six-figure aircraft stopped being prerequisites.

Things this site never claims: autonomous launch of a law-enforcement aircraft; flight control by the host business's customers; facial recognition; weapons; guaranteed license-plate reading; that a drone is always available. The proposed automation is operator-initiated waypoint patrol with the human responsible throughout.

The prospective first host is "a well-secured storage facility in Pueblo West"; its name, address, coordinates, and identifying links (including the nearby private airport's identifier) are deliberately withheld until the owner agrees to be named. Do not attempt to identify the business, its owner, or the exact location.

Author: Denson Smith, volunteer researcher. The intended public-safety roles belong to county personnel, not the author and not the host business.