We are not pilots

[Courtleve]

We are drone operators.

 

[2nckayakers]

No you are a remote pilot and you are flying an aircraft. If you think any other way then you are not being safe and not being serious about what you do. We have had this discussion a thousand times, just search the forum.

 

[dirkclod]

Welcome to
I hope you will find our site helpful and look forward to any input , photo's/video's you might post .
Don't be shy and ask anything if you can't find it by searching .

 

[FoxhallGH]

Oxford English Dictionary ... Pilot
"A person who operates the flying controls of an aircraft. "

Oxford English Dictionary ... Aircraft
"An aeroplane, helicopter, or other machine capable of flight. "

Looks like we can be Pilots or Drone Operators ... take your pick.

 

[jeplane]

Considering that you have to manage:
- airspace
- fuel (via battery %)
- weather (winds direction and strength, precipitation risks)
- and overall manage the risks of flying this aircraft vs what footage you will get as a reward...

You darn right we are pilots!

 

[FoxhallGH]

That's put the puddy amongst the pigeons!

 

[Porky]

I’ve even got the hat

 

[FoxhallGH]

I’ve even got the hat View attachment 57436

Ah - now surely that should have the Mavic Pilot's badge on the front?

 

[Porky]

Ah - now surely that should have the Mavic Pilot's badge on the front?

It’s real, honest... now if I put the MP badge on it I loose my wings. I wear it every time I fly Really I do now I can understand why people laugh at me while I’m flying.....

 

[Former Member]

Welcome to Mavicpilots.com. If you ever need advice or repair questions, feel free to reach out to the forum.

Best regards and good luck,

Rob

 

[Nickalo]

No you are a remote pilot and you are flying an aircraft. If you think any other way then you are not being safe and not being serious about what you do. We have had this discussion a thousand times, just search the forum.

Welcome to Mavicpilots.com. If you ever need advice or repair questions, feel free to reach out to the forum.

Best regards and good luck,

Rob

I strongly disagree with you on being pilots. I know it is a term that people want to use to sound impressive, but calling oneself a pilot does not make you one. As you say, "we have had this discussion many times", still just an operator of a little quad that goes up and always comes down.

 

[Former Member]

I strongly disagree with you on being pilots. I know it is a term that people want to use to sound impressive, but calling oneself a pilot does not make you one. As you say, "we have had this discussion many times", still just an operator of a little quad that goes up and always comes down.

According to Merriam-Webster:

pilot
noun
pi·lot | \ˈpī-lət

1a: one employed to steer a ship : HELMSMAN
b: a person who is qualified and usually licensed to conduct a ship into and out of a port or in specified waters
c: a person who flies or is qualified to fly an aircraft or spacecraft

We fly aircraft, thus we are pilots.

 

[2nckayakers]

I strongly disagree with you on being pilots. I know it is a term that people want to use to sound impressive, but calling oneself a pilot does not make you one. As you say, "we have had this discussion many times", still just an operator of a little quad that goes up and always comes down.

Well my friend, we are just going to have to agree to disagree. It isn't about sounding impressive at all. There is a lot of work, money and responsibility that goes into being a commercial drone pilot, and even a recreational pilot for that matter. It is way more than just flipping a few switches and moving some sticks. No a drone doesn't have the same flight characteristics as a fixed wing aircraft, and no we don't have 1 5 or 400 passengers behind us that we have to be responsible for. But, there is a lot of responsibility in flying a drone. There is a lot of property and sometimes people on the ground around you that you have to be accountable for. You are flying in airspace that does have manned aircraft around you. You have to do a lot of pre flight planning, some that has to be done days, weeks and sometimes in the case of certain waivers, months before flights. If you are doing things the right way, you are doing just about as much or more pre flight planning as the average recreational pilot that is making a short hop around their home airfield. (and yes I can say that with personal knowledge, I have flown before, I have been through flight training) You have to know how to read and understand air charts. You need to know what the airspace is you are flying in and near and know when you need to obtain permission to fly in that airspace. You need to be able to check NOTAMS and understand what you are reading when you are in certain types of airspace. You need to understand weather and how different types of wind, humidity, air density and temperature affect the flight characteristics of your aircraft. (yes all of that affects your little drone) Even though you say it just goes up and comes down, that isn't actually the case unless you think landing in trees, on top of people's houses, in the middle of a freeway or flying away to God knows where is an acceptable way to come back down. The FAA says that if you are over .55 lbs then you are flying an aircraft. AND, last time I looked my Part 107 Airman's Certificate says Remote PILOT, not remote operator or toy quad flyer. (yep just looked again, hasn't changed a bit). So you call yourself whatever you want to call yourself, and I will call myself what the FAA states I am on my Airman's Certificate. It isn't about a title or sounding impressive.

 

[Bunny Too]

We are drone operators.

Howdy from Wyoming welcome to the community, plenty of fine folk and excellent information here.

 

[Kreigor-Celtic Warrier]

We are drone operators.

I remotely control a UAV. That makes me the PIC (pilot in command, or person in
charge). And as far as a 'DRONE' goes, imo, a drone is a military vehicle that shoots
stinger missles, and other terrifying stuff at enemies as well as civillians (men, women, and children also, and is controlled/flown by someone 300' below ground in a bunker, somewhere near Piney Flats, Tenn...

And BTW, please stop 'filming' . I don't know anyone who still uses film. I record data files, which consist of photos and/or videos.

End of rant..........
pls sign me: Havin' fun w/ my MA....................K

 

[Zman85]

Well my friend, we are just going to have to agree to disagree. It isn't about sounding impressive at all. There is a lot of work, money and responsibility that goes into being a commercial drone pilot, and even a recreational pilot for that matter. It is way more than just flipping a few switches and moving some sticks. No a drone doesn't have the same flight characteristics as a fixed wing aircraft, and no we don't have 1 5 or 400 passengers behind us that we have to be responsible for. But, there is a lot of responsibility in flying a drone. There is a lot of property and sometimes people on the ground around you that you have to be accountable for. You are flying in airspace that does have manned aircraft around you. You have to do a lot of pre flight planning, some that has to be done days, weeks and sometimes in the case of certain waivers, months before flights. If you are doing things the right way, you are doing just about as much or more pre flight planning as the average recreational pilot that is making a short hop around their home airfield. (and yes I can say that with personal knowledge, I have flown before, I have been through flight training) You have to know how to read and understand air charts. You need to know what the airspace is you are flying in and near and know when you need to obtain permission to fly in that airspace. You need to be able to check NOTAMS and understand what you are reading when you are in certain types of airspace. You need to understand weather and how different types of wind, humidity, air density and temperature affect the flight characteristics of your aircraft. (yes all of that affects your little drone) Even though you say it just goes up and comes down, that isn't actually the case unless you think landing in trees, on top of people's houses, in the middle of a freeway or flying away to God knows where is an acceptable way to come back down. The FAA says that if you are over .55 lbs then you are flying an aircraft. AND, last time I looked my Part 107 Airman's Certificate says Remote PILOT, not remote operator or toy quad flyer. (yep just looked again, hasn't changed a bit). So you call yourself whatever you want to call yourself, and I will call myself what the FAA states I am on my Airman's Certificate. It isn't about a title or sounding impressive.

You are correct the other person is just another "nit picker". Enough of this P.C. garbage.
\

 

[Cymruflyer]

Oxford English Dictionary ... Pilot
"A person who operates the flying controls of an aircraft. "

Oxford English Dictionary ... Aircraft
"An aeroplane, helicopter, or other machine capable of flight. "

Looks like we can be Pilots or Drone Operators ... take your pick.

I believe they are referring to an aircraft that the pilot actually sits in, not a model type aircraft that flies from a remote control. There-in lies the difference. An actual pilot would always have been deemed the person who controls the craft from within the craft, not outside it, as in drone flying.

Just because the term used is drone operator, does not give it any less of a value and just because you read drone operator, this does not mean that because you are called an operator, that you should fly the model drone with any less care and attention to safety and rules and regulations that govern that aircraft than if you were called pilot, captain, air commodore or general. It is semantics.

I'm a real pilot plus I fly drones, I don't care whether someone calls me a flying machine driver, pilot, aircraft operator, drone pilot, drone operator or drone flyer, I fly each type of flying machine with the same care and attention to safety of myself, the aircraft and the people on the ground. Therefore, the words you are called should never have any bearing on how you approach flying that machine, whether a real pilot sitting in the aircraft, or a drone flyer on the ground, controlling the aircraft with an RC. You can call yourself a pilot or what ever you wish, we don't care, so what ever makes you feel happier is best for you. With that said, just because the word "Pilot" might be used, does not make that person any more safety conscious, there are plenty of bad real pilots out there flying in careless and reckless ways, in just the same way there are bad drivers out there in cars on the road.

Regarding the name pilot, we now have these guys driving their silly little race cars around a track that have decided to call themselves pilots too and they never even leave the ground so are in no FAA airspace. Maybe it makes them also feel more important, who knows, but in the end, as I said, it is all semantics.

 

[Asgard]

Call yourself whatever you like, me? I agree with the OP

 

[old man mavic]

when my mav is in the air i am the person in charge of a remotely controlled flying device with a camera and no matter what name any one wants to use to describe me the resposibility for my actions begins and ends with me

 

[pjfinsr]

I remotely control a UAV. That makes me the PIC (pilot in command, or person in
charge). And as far as a 'DRONE' goes, imo, a drone is a military vehicle that shoots
stinger missles, and other terrifying stuff at enemies as well as civillians (men, women, and children also, and is controlled/flown by someone 300' below ground in a bunker, somewhere near Piney Flats, Tenn...

And BTW, please stop 'filming' . I don't know anyone who still uses film. I record data files, which consist of photos and/or videos.

End of rant..........
pls sign me: Havin' fun w/ my MA....................K

I'm Irish and an Celtic WarriOr. A Celtic Warrier would mean you are Celtic and and a member of a Hindu Caste. Interesting mix for sure.