My problem with these discussions is that there are a few very different camps here. Those who have taken the exams and have paid their time and money have a tendency to sound very 'right on' about the rules, and defend them to the letter. I understand it, as it is a form of protectionism. You've spent the money to separate yourself (in the eyes of the law) from everyone else, and now you're not going to vote for relaxation of those laws.
But change is coming. The Mavic has changed the discussion already, to a degree, because of its size and weight. It is that much lighter and smaller that i think the likelihood of serious damage caused by "the smallest drones" becomes much closer to zero. Aircraft, SURELY, are designed to withstand things that are heavier and tougher than a Mavic. You get hailstones that are heavier than a mavic in some parts of the world. I'm not trying to open a debate about that point, by the way, because none of us actually know the answer. What I mean is that the Mavic is a few months old and it's lighter, smaller, less dangerous. In a year's time there will be something smaller still. The sub-7kg rule becomes increasingly irrelevant.
In the 2000s, the music industry put its fingers in its ears and tried to pretend that digital distribution of music would never happen, and even tried to prevent it happening - but of course you can't fight the tide. It happened anyway, record labels spent too long in denial and too much money on lawsuits, and the industry suffered for nearly a decade as it tried to devise a relevant and acceptable solution to the advances in data transfer and technology. It was 5 years behind the curve. Now that itunes doesn't use DRM, and we have Spotify, they finally have a solution. Was sharing mp3s illegal? Yes. Did I do it? Yes. But I now pay £20 per month for Spotify and enjoy being on the right side of the law.
Maybe people like the Editor (who I have had some excellent constructive discussions with over on Inspire Pilots) can be involved with changing these laws, and I think that for the most part people have their heart in the right places. But too much time is spent admonishing people for really really low level breaches. Don't tell me off for a photo of me driving at 75mph, on a car forum.
If in 2017, we managed to stop idiots from flying in restricted airspace and near airports, by having one clear unified voice on regulation, that would be a huge achievement and most of the bad press would go away. All the wasted hot air about smaller breaches just pushes that further away i believe.
I'm glad to see for the most part that this thread hasn't degenerated into one of the usual mud slinging matches we've seen on here.
I think people tend to get very hung up on the "oh it's never going to bring down an aircraft" type argument and that isn't really the bigger picture.
What about flying over a busy multi-lane road during peak times and your UAV malfunctions and loses power and drops. Is it going to go through a window or windshield? Doubt it at 750g. However, it could bounce off a car, land on the road and the lipo ignite - some drivers would swerve violently and the aftermath you could read about on the news. Did the UAV hit anybody and injure them? No, but the resultant damage certainly could.
These things maybe lightweight but they have sharp blades spinning at circa 8,000rpm - I've have seen first hand on the flying field what a carbon fibre blade can do to someone's fingers - it isn't a band aid and an aspirin type injury!
What professional/commercial RPAS (Drone) training gives you is a better understanding of the risks involved and risk mitigation that can be undertaken to minimise those areas.
Do hobby fliers need to go through all the procedures someone like myself does before flying an area? Absolutely not.
Should they undertake some of them? It would certainly make them a safer flyer and lower their chances of causing an accident and/or injuring someone or causing damage to something.
Do they have to do this is by law? Nope, not in the slightest but understanding your environment, risks and limiting them to an absolute minimum seems like common sense to me.
Leaving aside any BVLOS flights (I don't want to get I to one of those discussions) here are a few things that I've not seen mentioned on here but everybody should be aware of and take note not just to be safer but to protect their own aircraft and investment.
- Other than myself, I've not seen anyone ever mention anabatic and katabatic winds - they are real, they happen on steeply sloping terrain (mountains, hills, dams etc) similar effect can occur in urban environments on tall buildings etc and can take your aircraft and push it against the dam/mountain/building even on calm days
- Damaged props - I've cringed at some of the photos of people's props on here. It's the only thing that's keeping you airborne. If one is damaged, change it. A damaged prop WILL be out of balance. This can cause not only undue stress on the motor mounts and bearings but can transfer through the airframe and in extreme circumstances cause the IMU to error and cause a crash - Don't skimp on your props guys.
- Icing - Ice can form on your props even in temperatures above freezing. The difference in pressure between the upper and slower surfaces of the props (which gives you flight) causes a sudden drop in temperature.
- CB (Cumulonimbus) formations can have lighting strike up to 30 miles from where they are - be aware.
- Percentage display of battery capacity is not accurate. Percentage is relative, voltage is absolute. Try and get used to flying by voltage (under load) rather than percentage
- METARS and TAFs - maybe not for all but they will give you very accurate and localised weather conditions. If you are interested, get used to using them
- Winds aloft - winds at altitude can and usually are very different from conditions on the ground. Be mindful of that.
- Different geological formations have different magnetic properties which can affect the magnetometer (compass)
I could go on and on but for many hobby fliers the checks and permissions may not be relevant.
However, what I would say is whether you are flying for fun or thinking of getting into the hobby commercially do make sure you have a thorough checklist which you go through every flight.
Do make sure you do a site survey (even by eyeball) first before you fly an area.
Do check weather and wind conditions before you fly
Do check/think about whether you will need permission for where you are going to take off/land and fly before you make the flight.
I've said enough, so I'll shut up now but please do think about risk mitigation before you go airborne - it's not all about other aircraft there are other factors to consider as well.
Most of all guys - have fun. It's a fantastic hobby and we should all be enjoying it as it was meant to be but just do it safely and not recklessly.
Enough from me........
