Just last week, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced its mandatory drone registration taking effect Dec. 21.
Well, in only two days, the FAA has received upwards of 45,000 online registrations via its portal, as reported by Tech Crunch.
The site additionally reports that the FAA will remove its registration form Wednesday and Thursday night to perform some maintenance to better prepare it to withstand what's sure to be a deluge of drone owners attempting to register their machines following Christmas on Friday.
As the FAA stated last week, drone owners will have until Feb. 19 to register their drones or run the risk of being fined up to $250,000 or even spending three years in jail for not following the newly-installed federal law.
Under that law, drones or any kind of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) weighing between 0.55 pounds and 55 pounds (including attached cameras and/or brackets), will have to register with the FAA.
Drone owners who have been flying before Dec. 21 have until Feb. 19 to register with the FAA, however, any new UAV owners who purchased a drone since this past Monday will have to register before making their first flight.
Each registration will ask owners for their name, address and email address before the FAA produces a unique identification number, which must be displayed on that drone or UAV. Pilots must also carry digital proof of the registration that could be stored on their smartphones or tablets.
The FAA charges a $5 registration fee, and each registration will remain in effect for three years.
