Drone police

[Vic Moss]

The two issues are 1) the ownership and rules where you take off/land, and 2) the rules governing flight. The farther you can keep from people, the more likely you won't have problems. Some people are doing dangerous or intense activities and they don't want the distraction of the drone. If someone asks me to leave or to stay farther away I will. The new zoom feature on my MA2 makes it easier to film from a distance.

I'm not sure if you're asking questions or not but I'll answer them just in case.

1) Owners (& Security Guards) are definitely allowed to ask you to leave their property and forbid flying from it. And they don't even need an excuse.

2) Rules governing flight are dependent by why you're flying. It sounds like you''re flying hobby, which are technically called Recreational Flyers by the FAA. You can find those here: Recreational Flyers & Modeler Community-Based Organizations

Rules for flying anything that falls outside the recreational flights will be under 14CFR Part 107 rules. You can find those here: Certificated Remote Pilots including Commercial Operators

Both of those FAA pages give you the summary of each type of rules. I also have an article that explains the difference in language easier to read than FAA website. Hobby v. 107: Unscrambled

Hope that helps.

 

[Ben Anderson]

Both of those FAA pages give you the summary of each type of rules. I also have an article that explains the difference in language easier to read than FAA website. Hobby v. 107: Unscrambled

Thanks for the links. I've never flown a drone in the US so am personally not under those regs. However, the OP might be located in the US. He seems to be generally asking what our experience is as a community with "drone police", so I responded with mine.

 

[dirkclod]

Thanks for the links. I've never flown a drone in the US so am personally not under those regs. However, the OP might be located in the US. He seems to be generally asking what our experience is as a community with "drone police", so I responded with mine.

And you are correct that Is what he asked.
And thank you for responding.

 

[Vic Moss]

Thanks for the links. I've never flown a drone in the US so am personally not under those regs. However, the OP might be located in the US. He seems to be generally asking what our experience is as a community with "drone police", so I responded with mine.

Sorry. Your location said Indianapolis, so I assumed you were looking for US rules.

 

[Kelpfish]

For me, yes. I was flying over the ocean from an overlook. I looked up drone flying rules for that beach and all was good. Except for the overlook, which I was not permitted from flying. A park ranger approached me casually and asked how the flying is going. I told him it was fine but the morning light was harsh. Then he told me I must land the drone as it was illegal to be flying here. I reiterated that I looked up this beach and it was okay to fly. "Yes, he said, from down there, but not up here". I politely thanked him for the intel, landed and left. No tickets. Just a verbal.

 

[Bob4131]

I have flown my drone in over 15 states in the US and have never even been asked to stop flying or to leave. However I am constantly approached with questions. But I have to talked multiple drone operators and have some opinions:
1) Most issues are with the takeoff location. The property owner (private, business, government) can control what happens on their property. Do your research ahead of time!
2) Review FAA airspace regulations not just the DJI map plus state/local laws plus any regulations of the property from which you are taking off.
3) If you are approached by a park ranger, security guard, police, etc.. Be polite and bring your drone down if asked. You should not be having an argument and flying at the same time. Ask them what documentation they feel you need. If it is a private citizen and you know you are permitted to be flying and you want / need to fly there then call the police. Never try to win an argument in a shouting match.
4) The last report that I saw was the FAA had only handed out a few dozen fines. I am sure it has increased but it is still rare.
5) The FAA only gets involved if it is something significant or they have gotten a report from a self appointed drone police person. In the latter case like all legal agencies - they must take some action. Normally it will be a letter of warning. Often the person reporting the "violation" is obviously a kook, but the typical reaction is still to send a warning since that is their easiest means to "close the case". These self important busy buddies exist in all facets of life but they are small in numbers. They usually have low self confidence and this is a means of compensation.
With drones, I noticed this small group are usually unsuccesful 107 operators that want to drive everyone else out of the business. I know of a person in Florida that routinely turns in real estate companies to the FAA for not using him to do their drone shots. He admits, he doesn't know if they are using a 107 operator but he thinks this is a way to generate business ( it is not). My only advice is to avoid such people.

 

[shaneb50]

I have once had some one to come see what I was doing when I was flying my mini drone.and some times I have people watching me fly around but no problems so far

 

[DieselE]

Some very calm and pragmatic answers here but I think we should also sometimes politely and calmly explain why we are in fact permitted to fly in public places. It would be a disservice to permit people who are misinformed or overreaching to be permitted to force us to land/move away and maybe seriously inconvenience us. This is whether they are police or public or whatever - they all need to operate within the law or otherwise what is the point of having laws and regulations? I spent considerable time and money getting my CAA licence and I won't be bullied home by people who are acting beyond their remit. Hasn't happened yet but I will calmly listen to them and stand my ground if they are being unreasonable, and while citing the law that governs us both. Likewise I will modify my behaviour out of courtesy if they have a valid reason to request space - nesting birds, fears over individuals privacy (say a women's refuge for eg) could be just a couple of reasons to be cordial and accommodating.

 

[dirkclod]

If it hasn’t happened yet then you have went off topic.
Question was

. Has anyone reading this been fined by any law enforcement agency for small issues ,

Thanks for your opinion but let’s stay on track all.
Thanks.
dc

 

[Mavrick77]

Howdy .
It’s not my intent to start heavy discussions , it’s only intended to satisfy my curiosity.

Has anyone reading this been fined by any law enforcement agency for small issues , not flying above military top secret buildings , not flying 5 thousand feet above Cape Canaveral , or flying sport mode through a shopping mall on Christmas Eve .
I’m talking more like small incidents , like not having all your paperwork with you when flying, not having the appropriate alpha numeric nailed on your drone , well you get the picture .

Again let me say I’m just interested in how often pilots get themselves in hot water as a whole .

I do fly responsibly to the best of my ability/knowledge even excessively according to my wife .
I don’t know anybody in my drone cloud that has had a “ticket” for flying .


Well let me know
Thanks and happy flying to all .

I have to try sport mode through a shopping mall at Xmas ???

 

[Crashdummytest]

Just a quick comment on 'drone policing' on this forum:
People who are commenting about legality of some picture or video should be warned and then ultimately banned from the forum. The reason is that they are doing the opposite of what they think they are doing: they make drone hobbyists look irresponsible and careless. I think everybody who has flown for a while knows that unless you are really sharp and vigilante in all your handling of aircrafts you will not have this hobby for long.
So the drone police could potentially drag the whole forum down to child-level, should not be accepted for that reason. It's not such a big deal either, just slightly irritating.

 

[THE CYBORG]

Why not just assume everyone had the correct permission for the shoot & stop the negative comments

 

[Crashdummytest]

Why not just assume everyone had the correct permission for the shoot & stop the negative comments

Exactly

 

[maelstrom]

People who are commenting about legality of some picture or video should be warned and then ultimately banned from the forum.

Sorry, but I don’t agree with this. Without someone occasionally pointing out that videos of flights well beyond VLOS or over built-up areas are generally illegal in most countries, new forum members might get the impression that it’s legal/acceptable to do this.

 

[dirkclod]

Just a quick comment on 'drone policing' on this forum:
People who are commenting about legality of some picture or video should be warned and then ultimately banned from the forum. The reason is that they are doing the opposite of what they think they are doing: they make drone hobbyists look irresponsible and careless. I think everybody who has flown for a while knows that unless you are really sharp and vigilante in all your handling of aircrafts you will not have this hobby for long.
So the drone police could potentially drag the whole forum down to child-level, should not be accepted for that reason. It's not such a big deal either, just slightly irritating.

Being you brought a month old thread back I will also answer you.
Who you think should be banned from this forum is just that. Your thoughts. Thanks for the advice but no thanks.
The forum is here to help with drone issues and educate members that don’t know the rules. Yes some go overboard then the mob jumps in. Thats where staff if they see it chimes in to keep it civil.
As far as us having our hobby long I've been with our forums over
6 years and have read this that long and god willing will be reading
the same thing 6 more. Regulations will change as they do with anything and members will voice their opinions.
Now I see more have posted since I started this post so thanks for bringing it back up I will move on now.?
Good morning all, well to all that is in my part of the world ?‍

 

[Crashdummytest]

I am all for freedom of speech, I have no super-strong opinion on the topic, but personally I find it inappropriate to write negative comments about the legality of somebodys flight.
In fact, it opens up for gaming, faking illegal pix just to annoy the drone police.
And, the drone policing is placing this forum in a somewhat funny position where members have to be careful of what they post, illegal or not, as it can easily be mistaken etc. Better to be without is my opinion.

 

[dirkclod]

I am all for freedom of speech, I have no super-strong opinion on the topic, but personally I find it inappropriate to write negative comments about the legality of somebodys flight.
In fact, it opens up for gaming, faking illegal pix just to annoy the drone police.
And, the drone policing is placing this forum in a somewhat funny position where members have to be careful of what they post, illegal or not, as it can easily be mistaken etc. Better to be without is my opinion.

As far as free speech is concerned maybe read the whole guideline page not just the numbered ones on this forums stance on it.

 

[maelstrom]

I am all for freedom of speech...

Clearly you’re not if you want to ban people for what they say in their posts!

 

[Classic flyer]

Clearly you’re not if you want to ban people for what they say in their posts!

Thankyou for saying that, I wanted to but didn't want to start a big hoopla...be smart fly safe

 

[Crashdummytest]

n

Thankyou for saying that, I wanted to but didn't want to start a big hoopla...be smart fly safe

I do not want to ban anybody for using their freedom of speech, thats not what I meant . And, the guidelines covers it nicely already at point 15:

"15. The Community Owners strongly encourage users to obey all federal and local laws and regulations when flying. It is a helpful service to the community when members guide others in understanding and following the regulations. Meanwhile, fully understanding all international rules and regulations is complex and it is not the responsibility of the community owners, moderators or community members to police and enforce these rules and regulations. Any violation of another community rule, even if in the context of attempting to help enforce flying laws and regulations, is prohibited. "

I understand now that my message was a bit of a rant, it was triggered by going through an older incident of such on my own profile.. No big deal.