Drones havemoved from high-tech specialized equipment used primarily by themilitary and commercial photographers to more common uses at arapid pace, said Michael Huerta, administrator of the FederalAviation Administration, at the second annual UnmannedAircraft Systems (UAS) Symposium on March 27.

The online drone registry has received 770,000registrations in a little over 15 months, he added in preparedremarks opening the symposium.

According to Recode, that's an increase of 100,000 in thepast three months alone. Recode also noted that at the ConsumerElectronics Show in Las Vegas in January, Huerta said the agencyhad recorded 670,000 drone registrations at that time.

Describing the state of the drone industry today, Huerta added,"If you can dream it, drone manufacturers are building it. Some ofthe latest models can sense and avoid obstacles in their paths.Others can fit in your pocket, or be used under water. A few haveeven automated the 'selfie' game." In good news for the insuranceindustry and first responders, he observed that HelicopterAssociation International has even started a special dronemembership. "Many in that industry have even begun looking at waysthat drones can augment the tasks they do with helicopters,particularly in cases where drones can accomplish a task withoutputting human lives at risk."

What the numbers mean

As explained by CNN, although the 770,000 figure has often beenreported as the number of drone owners, the breakdown is a bit morecomplicated. Individual "hobbyists" receive just one ID number forall the drones they own, while anyone other than hobbyists — whichprimarily consists of commercial users — must register each droneseparately.

Huerta noted that since the final rule allowing people to flyunmanned aircraft for commercial purposes under specific conditionswas promulgated, the FAA has issued more than 37,000 remote pilotcertificates. "The B4UFLY app, which we created to let people knowwhere it's safe and legal to fly a drone, has been downloaded morethan 200,000 times," he added.

But "This was the easy stuff," Huerta said in his speech. "As wemove toward fully integrating unmanned aircraft into our airspace,the questions we need to answer are only getting more complicated."He then listed several of the challenges:

• What happens to people on the ground if a drone flying overheadfails?
• How can we make sure unmanned aircraft don't gain access tosensitive sites?
• After seeing how drones can be used for ill intent overseas,how can we ensure similar incidents don't happen in the U.S.?

Related: 10 steps to mitigating drone risks on constructionsites

A combined effort

Huerta acknowledged that "These aren't questions the FAA can orshould answer alone." He announced that the FAA is launching a newAviation Rulemaking Committee composed of aviation, tech, lawenforcement, and safety personnel to help create standards foridentifying and tracking unmanned aircraft. The agency has alsoformed two other industry-led groups: the Drone Advisory Committeeand the Unmanned Aircraft Safety Team.

Technology can solve some of the safety and security challengesthe country is facing, Huerta said in his remarks. For example, theFAA is already working with industry to test tools that can detectunauthorized drone operations near airports and other criticalinfrastructure.

"The way I see it, the more problems industry can solve itselfusing technology, the better. You're going to do it more quicklyand efficiently than the FAA ever could through regulations,"Huerta admitted.

Related: 10 risks and misuses for drones