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FAA Registration - Upcoming changes?

CCARR

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Dec 2, 2020
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Age
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Location
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I own a M2. Let me first say that my decision to make this my first drone was not at all based on whether or not I was required to register with the FAA. My considerations were quality, capability, and price. I feel that I've thoroughly educated myself regarding the current law and my intention is to be a compliant hobbyist flyer. That being said I am still considering registering for a couple reasons:

- To demonstrate that I am clearly law-abiding and and take my flying seriously when the day comes that my drone makes someone uncomfortable and I may have an interaction with the local authorities

- I am considering buying the folding landing gear extensions for it, and at that point it will exceed the 249g threshold and require registration anyway


I've spent time reading pro/con articles and posts about registration. Too many of them were people wanting someone to tell them it was okay to dodge the law. A thread here about a year ago responded to by BD0G and a few others helped validate my perspective. However, I gather that laws will likely be changing very soon to some degree. What I have watched and read is semi-speculative at this point and I am not fluent enough yet to understand the potential repercussions.

Can any of you more tenured members of the community tell me if any of the upcoming changes might effect my decision to register?

Thank you all.
 
What supposed upcoming changes are you referring to?

Regardless, registration is only $5, and your number then applies to any and all recreational drones you may acquire. (recreational registration isn't linked to your serial number). Seems like pretty low hassle if you want to avoid any issues in the future. My drones are all over 250g so I didn't have a choice though.
 
Thank you. That is where my head is at currently.

I'm interested in knowing about any potential financial or administrative changes on the horizon that would disincentivize registration when not necessary.

Thanks again.
 
I'm interested in knowing about any potential financial or administrative changes on the horizon that would disincentivize registration when not necessary.

I'm not aware of any. Like I said, registration isn't even really linked to a specific drone, so you can always choose to remove the registration number from the drone if you aren't legally required to have it.
 
@CCARR ,this is not a direct comment to your post ,but i find it strange that not only here in the UK, but also in the US ,and other countries ,that people spend several hundred pounds ,dollars,euros ,etc on a drone ,and then quibble about a small fee to comply with their countries rules on drone registration ,if you dont like big brother knowing your business ,then thats your choice ,but dont moan if you fall fowl of the rules ,or better still dont bother flying a drone
 
Understood. Overall the most effective money management executed by the most sustainably wealthy people happens in small increments more often than it does in large. I'm not concerned with the implications of "big brother" knowing my business. I don't mind the current $5 either. It's the consideration that my wallet is potentially open at their pleasure from that point moving forward to sustain my newfound hobby.

I'm grateful for the input. Thank you.
 
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@CCARR ,this is not a direct comment to your post ,but i find it strange that not only here in the UK, but also in the US ,and other countries ,that people spend several hundred pounds ,dollars,euros ,etc on a drone ,and then quibble about a small fee to comply with their countries rules on drone registration ,if you dont like big brother knowing your business ,then thats your choice ,but dont moan if you fall fowl of the rules ,or better still dont bother flying a drone
Agreed. You pay a lot more to register your motor vehicle then you do a drone. LOL>
 
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The only upcoming changes are to Remote ID, and he recreational flyer test. And you'll need to find and then fly by a Community Based Organization' set up rules and regulations. But you won't have to belong to the organization.

Once that happens, there will be many, many articles and opinion pieces published. Make sure you read one from a reputable drone writer. I'll be writing one as well. Hopefully people consider me a reputable drone writer.
 
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@CCARR ,this is not a direct comment to your post ,but i find it strange that not only here in the UK, but also in the US ,and other countries ,that people spend several hundred pounds ,dollars,euros ,etc on a drone ,and then quibble about a small fee to comply with their countries rules on drone registration ,if you dont like big brother knowing your business ,then thats your choice ,but dont moan if you fall fowl of the rules ,or better still dont bother flying a drone
Agreed. And it seems funny to me that folks will spend a lot of time researching and studying this issue, all over a $5 registration fee. I'm sure I'm far from the wealthiest person here, but my time is worth more than spending even 30 minutes to save $5 (of course, if you're doing it out of intellectual curiosity, then the research is certainly worth it - I've spent a lot of time researching similar things with no direct financial benefit) but if it's purely to figure out whether to spend the $5, then it seems like a waste of time unless you're really worries about the "Big Brother" aspect.

As far as future costs, there's nothing proposed out there that I'm aware of, but even if the FAA suddenly said "hey, everyone who wants to continue flying has to pay $2000/month." then just remove the number and cancel your registration. At that point, if you want to fly legally, you have to pay it, so it won't matter if you registered before or not. But really, that's not going to happen.

To the original subject, I'm Part 107 so I register my drone, but even if I weren't and were flying something under 250g, I'd still register for the purpose you stated - I can show it to a LEO to show I'm flying legally even if he/she doesn't know it's not required. And again, it comes to $1.66 per year.
 
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