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butthurt [soylentnews.org] writes:

A year ago, the Department of Defense Inspector General [wikipedia.org] prepared a report [scribd.com] (Javascript required; paywalled) regarding the agency's use of unmanned aerial vehicles over its home country. Now made public in response to a Freedom of Information Act request, the report noted that the Pentagon first developed a policy about such flights in 2006. Under the policy, such missions may take place with the approval of the Secretary of Defense, or of someone designated by the Secretary of Defense. As of the time of the report, the authority to approve the missions had never been delegated. The policy allows Department of Defense drones carrying weapons to fly above the U.S. only for training or testing purposes.

Between 2006 and 2015, civil authorities asked for the use of military drones on "less than twenty" occasions. One mayor requested flights to survey pot-holes; that request was denied.

USA Today [usatoday.com] carried a story about the report.

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