Airspace question

[Colonel Forbin]

So I was at a concert last night (last 3 nights actually) and during the concerts of ~25,000 people there was a drone over the crowd above the venue. Probably around 200 ft. Easy to see and when the sun went down no mistaking the red and reen lights and the strobe on it. My understanding is that hour before and after all stadium events that is no fly airspace. Could the venue itself possibly have permisison to be flying over the crowd or was somebody blatantly being "criminal"?

 

[mavic3usa]

There could be many applicable rules and regulations depending on the location of the venue, the people, etc and whether it is indoor or outdoor but any location which is not in controlled airspace (where you need to apply for LAANC) then there are no hourly restrictions; you are free to safely fly there 24/7 unless there is a TFR or some other valid reason.

 

[Meta4]

There could be many applicable rules and regulations depending on the location of the venue, the people, etc and whether it is indoor or outdoor but any location which is not in controlled airspace (where you need to apply for LAANC) then there are no hourly restrictions; you are free to safely fly there 24/7 unless there is a TFR or some other valid reason.

Regardless of local airspace issues, you can't conduct operations over people without a valid Section 107.39 waiver.
The flyer may or may not have had that.

 

[Vic Moss]

So I was at a concert last night (last 3 nights actually) and during the concerts of ~25,000 people there was a drone over the crowd above the venue. Probably around 200 ft. Easy to see and when the sun went down no mistaking the red and reen lights and the strobe on it. My understanding is that hour before and after all stadium events that is no fly airspace. Could the venue itself possibly have permisison to be flying over the crowd or was somebody blatantly being "criminal"?

Not quite. The only standard "venue" rules are for a very specific set of events held by the NFL, MLB, Div 1 NCAA Football, and some auto racing events. There is no standing TFR for any other stadium events.

My concern would be if the pilot had a waiver to fly over people, or a Category 1 drone.

Full stadium TFR language here: 0/0367 NOTAM Details

 

[Pilot Adam]

So I was at a concert last night (last 3 nights actually) and during the concerts of ~25,000 people there was a drone over the crowd above the venue. Probably around 200 ft. Easy to see and when the sun went down no mistaking the red and reen lights and the strobe on it. My understanding is that hour before and after all stadium events that is no fly airspace. Could the venue itself possibly have permisison to be flying over the crowd or was somebody blatantly being "criminal"?

Should be ok. There are different rules for flight over people and night flights.

 

[GFields]

There are different rules for flight over people and night flights.

No there are no "different" rules. Rules for flying at night and over people have been set by the FAA. Please clarify.

 

[Colonel Forbin]

Okay apparently the hour before and after applies just to the following:
Flying drones in and around stadiums is prohibited starting one hour before and ending one hour after the scheduled time of any of the following events:

• Major League Baseball
• National Football League
• NCAA Division One Football
• NASCAR Sprint Cup, Indy Car, and Champ Series races

Specifically, UAS operations are prohibited within a radius of three nautical miles of the stadium or venue. The FAA and SMA have developed a toolbox for stadium management and team representatives to use for media and outreach purposes.

 

[bcfd29]

very likely could have been event based operations for safety, security, or just overhead views of the crowd and stage.

 

[Parkerjh]

How were the Phish shows?
Been a great summer so far huh?

Those drones at Deer Creek are flown by the police and not the venue staff. I am sure they have proper approvals. The cops there have always been the worst....going back to my time seeing the Dead, always terrible. However, the drones seemingly helped keep the nitrous mafia at bay so I'm all for that.