Best and worst aspects of drone flying

[Phantomrain.org]

I HATE how I feel like I am breaking the Law in order to get my Hands On a NEW DRONE !

Whether or not theres smuggling them in from Canada .

Pleading with some Korean Seller , or buying some boot leg drone from someone else who found a way to circumvent the law.

I think about how this Forum used to be Stickler for not breaking the laws right down to a drone being overweight by 1 gram. lol

Now its phone calls everday on how to get a drone that is Banned in the US. Its a terrible feeling as well as knowing there is no real support, were breaking the law.

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly in the Rain, Land on the Water.

 

[AeroJ]

I HATE how I feel like I am breaking the Law in order to get my Hands On a NEW DRONE !

It is our duty to try and circumvent stupid political laws based on illegitimate security assertions that have no basis in reality. I say go for it and get as many flight hours under your belt before they try and take that away too ! And then continue regardless, knowing you are morally in the right ! None of us enjoy being criminalised merely indulging in a harmless hobby. Over here EUC's (electric unicycles) are not allowed anywhere, but it's a pathetic law, and I'm simply not having it, and I ride mine every day, sometimes rather enjoying the extra challenge of remaining unnoticed by and evading those with power to catch me at it and call an unnecessary halt to all my fun !

 

[mavic3usa]

I HATE how I feel like I am breaking the Law in order to get my Hands On a NEW DRONE !

Whether or not theres smuggling them in from Canada .

Pleading with some Korean Seller , or buying some boot leg drone from someone else who found a way to circumvent the law.

I think about how this Forum used to be Stickler for not breaking the laws right down to a drone being overweight by 1 gram. lol

Now its phone calls everday on how to get a drone that is Banned in the US. Its a terrible feeling as well as knowing there is no real support, were breaking the law.

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly in the Rain, Land on the Water.

It is our duty to try and circumvent stupid political laws based on illegitimate security assertions that have no basis in reality. I say go for it and get as many flight hours under your belt before they try and take that away too ! And then continue regardless, knowing you are morally in the right !

While I don't feel exactly bad for doing it now and I agree the People should take every advantage while we can especially when the actions of the government are ill-founded, ultimately I think when the day comes we'll need to accept it. The day DJI is officially banned in the US is probably the last day I will buy a DJI drone and I'm just hoping the confiscation order doesn't come down because, like with other aspects of American life and our current relationship with our government, will probably have to comply with that order as well. If a "DJI TFR" goes into effect one day, sadly my DJI drones are grounded.

 

[AeroJ]

I think when the day comes we'll need to accept it.

No, that's not the spirit ! We need to keep going, and THEY (regulators) need to accept that we're not going away. Then they just need to punt delivery drones up to 500 ft minimum, private planes, paragliders and helis up to 1000 ft minimum and we can all play nicely together in the sky !

In the UK, it is becoming easier rather than harder to fly year after year. Rules are actually getting more relaxed, and people are, at long last beginning to chill TF out about small personal drones. I remain confident that the rest of the world will carry on largely in this vein, until the sight of a drone hovering about becomes a common and unalarming thing, perhaps even un-noteworthy experience for the general public.

But you might have to vote out those dreadful senators, starting with that Stefanik woman, and probably right up to their experimental man-pig god-king first ! He already looks like something you'd scrape off a baking tray that's had pizza cooked above it, he can't have long left now, and his successor might be considerably less hostile towards DJI and hopefully the hobby in general ! You guys need a president that loved building planes when he was a lad.

 

[mavic3usa]

No, that's not the spirit ! We need to keep going, and THEY (regulators) need to accept that we're not going away. Then they just need to punt delivery drones up to 500 ft minimum, and we can all play nicely together in the sky !

In the UK, it is becoming easier rather than harder to fly year after year. Rules are actually getting more relaxed, and people are, at long last beginning to chill TF out about small personal drones. I remain confident that the rest of the world will carry on largely in this vein, until the sight of a drone hovering about becomes a common and unalarming thing, perhaps even un-noteworthy experience for the general public.

But you might have to vote out those dreadful senators, starting with that Stefanik woman, and probably right up to their experimental man-pig god-king first ! He already looks like something you'd scrape off a baking tray that's had pizza cooked above it, he can't have long left now, and his successor might be considerably less hostile towards DJI and hopefully the hobby in general ! You guys need a president that loved building planes when he was a lad.

For sure, the fight continues. I also like to think the rules for flying a drone are not that onerous for now but things have been known to go from 0 to 100 overnight. Seems like either you are free to fly here no problem no worries or don't fly there or go to jail. Of all the places that I would like to fly, this rule makes it 50/50 which is ok but it would be better if it were 80/20.

Unlike in the UK, only the federal government controls these drones which is why I believe it's going to get worse before it gets better when state and local governments get involved; we have a sharp division as you know. Imagine having friendly vs. unfriendly drone states. Right now, widespread we just don't have police handling drones (except for a few pockets).

 

[AeroJ]

If I was @Phantomrain.org I would start adapting my Mini 4 waterproof skins for SkyRover X1 and SkyAny X1 asap, either of which you guys can buy on Amazon today !

 

[hank970]

Yeah, only thing worse than a working ranger is a pissed off unpaid working ranger !
Unless you can throw some cash at him to get him to look in another direction...

There are a lot of things worse than a ranger, either working and paid or working and unpaid. Consider visitors who try to feed bears or ride bison, folks who drive drunk, idiots who can't resist leaving their graffiti and litter everywhere or stealing archaeological artifacts, self-proclaimed outdoorsmen who get lost or stranded and have to be rescued, or contemptible people who chafe at any regulation intended to protect resource values or promote the public safety, etc. The list is endless.

And your suggestion that rangers can be bribed to look the other way is reprehensible. My suggestion to you is that you avoid visiting our national parks. You really don't deserve them, and they can do without the likes of you.

 

[Bad Santa]

There are a lot of things worse than a ranger, either working and paid or working and unpaid. Consider visitors who try to feed bears or ride bison, folks who drive drunk, idiots who can't resist leaving their graffiti and litter everywhere or stealing archaeological artifacts, self-proclaimed outdoorsmen who get lost or stranded and have to be rescued, or contemptible people who chafe at any regulation intended to protect resource values or promote the public safety, etc. The list is endless.

Dude, it's like you know me or something.

 

[AeroJ]

And your suggestion that rangers can be bribed to look the other way is reprehensible.

Why ? Your politicians can and allegedly do take bribes, and, your president appears to depend almost exclusively on that premise, that being his main attribute in the eyes of the rest of the world !

We recently bribed him oursleves, to lower UK tariffs by inviting him to stay in one of our castles, giving him a needlessly massive banquet with 'the King', and we gave him a little hat ! Bingo - our tariffs drop to 10% !

Why on earth would you think lower level state employees are immune to similar corruption and skullduggery, when that is the example they are set ?!

My suggestion to you is that you avoid visiting our national parks. You really don't deserve them, and they can do without the likes of you.

Your wish is my command; all incentive to visit your country and fly there has been removed by the park rules before I even get to the airport ! We ALL deserve the parks, but yours don't deserve me !

 

[hank970]

Good.

 

[sawman]

Yes it is an ag plane/pilot..

The problem is when that pilot is doing those low fly-overs and buzzing my house/property, I believe it to be a flight that is recreational in nature and they are using their status as an ag-pilot to get around flight rules. There are no airports or landing strips near me that are available so it's not taking off or landing.

I've talked to the farmer who farms the largest acreage near me and he doesn't utilize that service. All his summer and winter crop seed is spread by tractor.

Furthermore, I've traced their flightpath on foot, using my drone, and using google earth and there are no farmed fields in either direction of their flight path.

I was able to actually get the name of the pilot so I reached out to this person in a polite and respectful way and told them about the group of us that fly drones in my area, and that they have caused us to make emergency landings when we became aware of their presence, and that a collision with one of these will make a real bad day/life for everyone involved we would appreciate it that if they are working if we could get a schedule of when they will be in the area so we know when not to fly.

Naturally they did not respond which reinforces the idea that they were not working and were flying recreationally. I would think if it was for legitimate business purposes they would know their schedule in advance and be able to make that kind of notification.

Other people in the area have commented on these fly-overs and made similar comments about there not being any reason for them to be flying in their area like that ( i.e. no farmed fields, all woodlands, etc. ).

Theres another single engine small plane that is a non-ag plane that flies in a similar manner around here and I am thinking it may be the same pilot.

Well, you've done your part in gathering information. You should call your nearest FAA Field office and report it. It's very odd for him to be flying such aircraft and in such manner, being so far from any workable area (those things aren't cheap to operate either). The aircraft owner may also take exception to wasting fuel for no apparent reason. You could easily make his "joy rides" less enjoyable. Best of luck.

 

[hank970]

"Well, you've done your part in gathering information. You should call your nearest FAA Field office and report it. It's very odd for him to be flying such aircraft and in such manner, being so far from any workable area (those things aren't cheap to operate either). The aircraft owner may also take exception to wasting fuel for no apparent reason. You could easily make his "joy rides" less enjoyable. Best of luck."

It seems there's a lot of jumping to conclusions about the intent of the pilot and his flight parameters. Not all such flights are related to agriculture. For instance, do you have a local mosquito control district or a problem with an insect infestation that's more widespread than the extent of local croplands? Such planes are also used for wildlands fire suppression. The state of Colorado owns a couple of them expressly for that purpose.

 

[Daniel Mclean]

Being a pilot myself, I can certainly assure you that such activity is illegal and very dangerous. Report it to the FAA ASAP!

 

[AeroJ]

Being a pilot myself, I can certainly assure you that such activity is illegal and very dangerous. Report it to the FAA ASAP!

Yeah I couldn't believe something so big, heavy, and eminently dangerous would be allowed to overfly residential dwellings at those sort of heights.

 

[Riteguy]

Yes. rather too narrow in my opinion. I don't know why people in National Parks are expecting silent skies. Manned aviation faces no additional restrictions here to ensure that, public roads often go right through them, and other visitors all make a reasonable amount of noise, to which drones would contribute hardly anything. We all know how quiet (for example) a Mini series drone can be, to the extent that it's not really hearable from the ground at all once it gets to around 200 ft or so, so I find it quite hard to take seriously rules based on drone noise disturbing people's peace and quiet. So why have these regulators, in their 'wisdom', not simply confined us to 200 ft+ except while launching or landing ? or limited our numbers so there are never more than say 5 in the sky at a time ? Or ring fenced a few days a month / season drones are freely allowed to film ? Or allowed drones to overfly when the park is closed and empty of people ?! Where is the justification or mandate for banning the entire hobby from access to the land all year round ?

I agree whole heartedly. The parks are for everyone's enjoyment and the slight noise a drone puts out is negligible. Regulators don't even try to accomodate drones and it's very unfair. Remember these lands are for the enjoyment of everyone, including drone pilots.

 

[Ol' Sparky]

Like - I like to get high. Enjoy the views
Friendly, curious people you meet
Hate - Dumb-*** rules
- Karens who think you are doing something illegal
- Dumb-*** pilots that make us all look bad
- Law enforcement personnel that don't know the laws. (my neighbor on 35th floor called police because there was a drone hovering outside his window. Cop told him that it wasn't illegal to fly a drone)

 

[hank970]

I agree whole heartedly. The parks are for everyone's enjoyment and the slight noise a drone puts out is negligible. Regulators don't even try to accomodate drones and it's very unfair. Remember these lands are for the enjoyment of everyone, including drone pilots.

No, the National Park System and National Park Service were created decades before anyone conceived of a drone, so the enjoyment of drone pilots had nothing to do with the purpose of their establishment. National parks, at least, are established for specific reasons and purposes -- to celebrate a particular landscape or historic event, for example -- and they cannot and should not be obliged to accommodate every new gadget or interest. They were never meant to be all things to all people.

There are other places, often equally spectacular, where enthusiasts can freely enjoy flying their drones. Seek them out and fly where you're welcome to fly.

 

[mavic3usa]

No, the National Park System and National Park Service were created decades before anyone conceived of a drone, so the enjoyment of drone pilots had nothing to do with the purpose of their establishment. National parks, at least, are established for specific reasons and purposes -- to celebrate a particular landscape or historic event, for example -- and they cannot and should not be obliged to accommodate every new gadget or interest. They were never meant to be all things to all people.

There are other places, often equally spectacular, where enthusiasts can freely enjoy flying their drones. Seek them out and fly where you're welcome to fly.

Too late for that, they've already "evolved" in so many ways; can't stop now. I've already mentioned paragliding and hot air ballooning and there's skiing and rock climbing and white water rafting and a bunch of other modern activities because they realize those are "toys" too and the drone should be disparaged. And in fact, they allowed drones...until they fell out of favor, so don't make it seem like there's some sort of historical precedent to banning "toys". You can only stay stuck in the past for so long. NPS should not obligated to "accommodate" but they also shouldn't drop the ban hammer unless they have a good reason to. I know you are old school and change is hard but we gotta do this or else how can we expect anyone else to accept it as you call it "other places." I mean, this is where state parks got their marching orders....from NPS. Once day, cars will fly.....

 

[hank970]

As I've mentioned before, there are no express FAA and/or NPS regulations which prohibit drone flights in the public airspace above national parklands. Thus, you can legally launch, land, and operate a drone outside park boundaries and fly over such areas. Your only limits in that regard will be the endurance of your battery and how far you can fly VLOS until terrain and/or distance attenuate your control signals.

So, knock yourself out. Get it out of your system. Stop whining. Fly over any national park to your heart's content. Well, not any national parkland. I'd urge you to avoid flying over the Catoctin Mountain Park in Maryland, wherein lies Camp David. Most parks in the National Capitol Region are probably off-limits, as well. And there may be others near sensitive installations which are under permanent TFRs.

Your contention that state parks in 50 different jurisdictions take their marching orders from the NPS is laughable. Apples and oranges. With all due respect, you're simply misinformed.

 

[glocke12]

"Well, you've done your part in gathering information. You should call your nearest FAA Field office and report it. It's very odd for him to be flying such aircraft and in such manner, being so far from any workable area (those things aren't cheap to operate either). The aircraft owner may also take exception to wasting fuel for no apparent reason. You could easily make his "joy rides" less enjoyable. Best of luck."

It seems there's a lot of jumping to conclusions about the intent of the pilot and his flight parameters. Not all such flights are related to agriculture. For instance, do you have a local mosquito control district or a problem with an insect infestation that's more widespread than the extent of local croplands? Such planes are also used for wildlands fire suppression. The state of Colorado owns a couple of them expressly for that purpose.

Negative on all counts. I've looked into all of that when I have the time to do so.