The report from the Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) predicts New York will gain more than 2,200 jobs in the three years following the permitted use of drones in American airspace.

Civilian drone integration is scheduled to begin in 2015. AUVSI forecasts that domestic drones will be a $13 billion industry in the years following, creating 70,000 jobs nationwide.

Report author Darryl Jenkins says the drone industry will grow at a faster pace than the rest of the economy.

"We're looking at initially high rates of growth, then leveling off where it's growing just a tad faster than the economy."

Drones are expected to have a role in everything from agriculture, to law enforcement and cargo delivery. Early-phase jobs will be in engineering and manufacturing.

Upstate New York is currently bidding to become one of six designated testing sites for the Federal Aviation Administration as it works on guidelines for regulating drones.

AUVSI says if the state secured one of those test sites, it would only increase the economic potential.