Flying at cruise destinations?

[Chase R]

Arm drone in remote place near cruise ship.
Board cruise ship with just the remote.
Fly drone onto cruise ship.
Drone on cruise ship.

 

[Robbyg]

Arm drone in remote place near cruise ship.
Board cruise ship with just the remote.
Fly drone onto cruise ship.
Drone on cruise ship.

Please send me a video link when you do that

 

[Robbyg]

I emailed Celebrity cruises about this because I'd like to take my Mavic with me on my Alaska cruise in May. Here is what they said:

"Drones will be confiscated at the gangway and will only be released to you in port on the understanding that you are fully liable to comply with local regulations and operate them legally in that specific port of call. It is your responsibility to acquire permission from each of the countries the ship will be docking at before the drone is released back to you."

I'll be sure to take a copy of that email with me, but it looks like Celebrity is OK with it. I think that Celebrity is part of the Royal Caribbean "family", so my guess is that RC would be OK too. But it is nice to have it in writing, just to be sure.

Hope this helps!

Rich

All the posts after this are a classical example of how people only want to hear what they want to hear and ignore the rest.

Note the Line:
It is your responsibility to acquire permission from each of the countries the ship will be docking at before the drone is released back to you.

Every reply seemed to skip right past that. As someone who ended up being out $550 in customs duty on a flight to Jamaica I can tell you first hand don't ignore what people are telling you.

In the case of a cruise, Flying a Drone in another country is one thing. Actually getting written permission from some government agency to fly the drone, well I would love to see that.

 

[Fyodor_Ivanov]

Did you guys see the video of they guys phantom that mysteriously flays out of the sky while flying near the cruise ship in port?

 

[Robbyg]

Did you guys see the video of they guys phantom that mysteriously flays out of the sky while flying near the cruise ship in port?

No, please link the video.

 

[mstevens]

All the posts after this are a classical example of how people only want to hear what they want to hear and ignore the rest.

Note the Line:
It is your responsibility to acquire permission from each of the countries the ship will be docking at before the drone is released back to you.

Every reply seemed to skip right past that. As someone who ended up being out $550 in customs duty on a flight to Jamaica I can tell you first hand don't ignore what people are telling you.

In the case of a cruise, Flying a Drone in another country is one thing. Actually getting written permission from some government agency to fly the drone, well I would love to see that.

Cruise ships are viewed as significant potential targets of terrorism and mischief. They carry far more people than an airliner - heck, the crew alone of many cruise ships consists of far more people than the entire population of my town - in a confined space.

If I were to buzz a ship, or even a cruise terminal, near my home in Mexico I would fully expect to have federales find me very quickly. Attempting to scuba dive near a cruise ship will get the Navy responding very quickly. I know because I see morons attempt this nearly every week.

Where I live in Mexico, one of the busiest cruise destinations in the world, we often have US Navy and US Coast Guard ships docked, not to mention the megayachts of US billionaires and Russian oligarchs. Flying near any of those vessels is very likely to get you visited by people you'd probably rather not be visited by. Your cruise ship will cheerfully depart without you if you are detained.

So, assuming you can get your drone onto a cruise ship and take it with you when you disembark at some cruise destination, I'd really strongly recommend that anyone considering flying while on a cruise stay well away from the cruise terminal. Once you get to an appropriate area to fly, then it's still crucial to heed Robbyg's advice to ensure that you are following that country's laws.

 

[Fyodor_Ivanov]

All the posts after this are a classical example of how people only want to hear what they want to hear and ignore the rest.

Note the Line:
It is your responsibility to acquire permission from each of the countries the ship will be docking at before the drone is released back to you.

Every reply seemed to skip right past that. As someone who ended up being out $550 in customs duty on a flight to Jamaica I can tell you first hand don't ignore what people are telling you.

In the case of a cruise, Flying a Drone in another country is one thing. Actually getting written permission from some government agency to fly the drone, well I would love to see that.

I don't understand how my post, which listed an emailed response from RC, is posting only what I want to hear..

Also, I received another email from RC this evening. This time the more generic response to the initial email I sent over a week ago.

"Thank you for your email and for this opportunity to be of service by answering any questions you may have. Please accept our apologies for the delay in response.

Guests may bring their drones onboard for storage during the cruise. Drones will be confiscated at the gangway and released to guests in once in a port-of-call only on the understanding they are fully liable to comply with local regulations and operate them legally in that port-of-call. It is the sole responsibility of the guest to acquire permission from each of the countries where the ship will be docking before the drone is released back to their possession."

Note the last part where is also says something about it being my responsibility to get permission from the countries..

So now I have two emails saying that I can bring it. Here is the list of ports with restrictions I received from Ryno my onboard concierge..


"St. Thomas: Note that they cannot be flown by the dock area for security and because of the close proximity to the airport. For other areas see attachment.

St. Kitts: Please be advised that drones are not allowed to be operated while in port.

Aruba: Guests are allowed to make use of their drone to a certain extent. They can fly it anywhere on the island with the exception of within the vicinity of the airport and the ports where cruise or cargo ship will be docked. We have 3 restricted areas; the airport and two ports one for cruise vessels and one for cargo vessels. Mandatory they have to maintain a 1 mile radius distance from these areas. If by any chance they do come within this area the drone will be confiscated and a fine will be imposed on their part. As per the officials at customs we have been told they do allow drones to be used by guest after they have cleared it. From the ships side a list of guest in possession of a drone should be provided to us in advance together with each drone’s information such as brand, model and serial number. We would appreciate to receive this list at earliest possible in order to have it stamped and singed by customs officials.

Curacao: As below must be sent to Customs / Tele Communication - Pots / Aviation and Curacao Ports Authority. They require specification of the drone in order to inform them to receive approval. Letter with details of drone must be sent with pre arrival information"

Hope this is informative, my take on all this is just to ask and see why they say, who knows they might say yes..

I hope I'm not just posting only what I want to hear..

 

[jeremyjudkins]

Arm drone in remote place near cruise ship.
Board cruise ship with just the remote.
Fly drone onto cruise ship.
Drone on cruise ship.

hah good luck with that. the cruise ship is one big object waiting to mess up your compass.

 

[m0j0]

Really.. I flew a P3 right next to a cruise ship that was docked. Not a single blip.

 

[ElGuapo]

Really.. I flew a P3 right next to a cruise ship that was docked. Not a single blip.

Were you a passenger on that cruise ship?.

 

[Fyodor_Ivanov]

I'm still looking for this video of the drone vs cruise ship. Think it was posted in a cruising forum..

 

[Fyodor_Ivanov]

Instagram post by Kenny Grant • May 24, 2016 at 12:40am UTC

Think that's the video...

And this is the link to the thread..

Bringing a Drone on a Royal Caribbean Cruise

Working off my phone, don't know if it will work or not.

 

[Randall]

I emailed Celebrity cruises about this because I'd like to take my Mavic with me on my Alaska cruise in May. Here is what they said:

"Drones will be confiscated at the gangway and will only be released to you in port on the understanding that you are fully liable to comply with local regulations and operate them legally in that specific port of call. It is your responsibility to acquire permission from each of the countries the ship will be docking at before the drone is released back to you."

I'll be sure to take a copy of that email with me, but it looks like Celebrity is OK with it. I think that Celebrity is part of the Royal Caribbean "family", so my guess is that RC would be OK too. But it is nice to have it in writing, just to be sure.

Hope this helps!

Rich

Yep, for celebrity was just about to post that you can get them from security when you exit the ship, if the port allows (on my cruise Barbados and Martinique didn't allow drones). But the person I talked to at celebrity also pointed out that no flying over the ship in port else port security was asked to confiscate the drone and return to the ship's security.

 

[Robbyg]

I don't understand how my post, which listed an emailed response from RC, is posting only what I want to hear..

Also, I received another email from RC this evening. This time the more generic response to the initial email I sent over a week ago.

"Thank you for your email and for this opportunity to be of service by answering any questions you may have. Please accept our apologies for the delay in response.

Guests may bring their drones onboard for storage during the cruise. Drones will be confiscated at the gangway and released to guests in once in a port-of-call only on the understanding they are fully liable to comply with local regulations and operate them legally in that port-of-call. It is the sole responsibility of the guest to acquire permission from each of the countries where the ship will be docking before the drone is released back to their possession."

Note the last part where is also says something about it being my responsibility to get permission from the countries..

So now I have two emails saying that I can bring it. Here is the list of ports with restrictions I received from Ryno my onboard concierge..


"St. Thomas: Note that they cannot be flown by the dock area for security and because of the close proximity to the airport. For other areas see attachment.

St. Kitts: Please be advised that drones are not allowed to be operated while in port.

Aruba: Guests are allowed to make use of their drone to a certain extent. They can fly it anywhere on the island with the exception of within the vicinity of the airport and the ports where cruise or cargo ship will be docked. We have 3 restricted areas; the airport and two ports one for cruise vessels and one for cargo vessels. Mandatory they have to maintain a 1 mile radius distance from these areas. If by any chance they do come within this area the drone will be confiscated and a fine will be imposed on their part. As per the officials at customs we have been told they do allow drones to be used by guest after they have cleared it. From the ships side a list of guest in possession of a drone should be provided to us in advance together with each drone’s information such as brand, model and serial number. We would appreciate to receive this list at earliest possible in order to have it stamped and singed by customs officials.

Curacao: As below must be sent to Customs / Tele Communication - Pots / Aviation and Curacao Ports Authority. They require specification of the drone in order to inform them to receive approval. Letter with details of drone must be sent with pre arrival information"

Hope this is informative, my take on all this is just to ask and see why they say, who knows they might say yes..

I hope I'm not just posting only what I want to hear..

What I am saying is that the cruise line is being polite in saying you need a letter from each of the destinations in order to use the drone at that destination. What they are not saying is that it is not an easy task!

Just read all the other threads on the forum about guys who have asked small airfields for permission to fly near to the airfield. According to all the stuff I have read it is legal if you notify them that your going to fly, you just need to get a verbal clearance. Yet I have not seen anybody say that they got the go ahead without doing a lot of ground work.

It's the same all over the world. Joe Drone Pilot wants to fly but needs permission so he calls or writes to Mr. Bureaucrat.
Mr Bureaucrat thinks about it for 10 seconds and thinks "Drone = possible problems", so he just says no.

What would you do if you were in his shoes? You have a nice cushy job for the last 20 years and some guy wants permission to fly a drone that most likely is harmless but on the other hand could end up being front page news.

What do you think will happen if you crash the drone into
a tour helicopter while flying in Aruba or St Thomas. The first thing your going to do is whip out your permission letter with Mr Bureaucrats signature and stamp on it. You will suffer whatever the law dictates and Mr. Bureaucrat is out of a Job.

All I am saying is that when you are told to get a permission letter or get verbal permission your going to find that it is very difficult to find anybody who is going to write it and sign it or verbally vouch for it. It is hard in the USA and it's even harder in most foriegn countries.

I am not saying you should not try, I certainly would give it a try but do not expect a letter to arrive in the mail with ease or that you will walk up to customs and just get a green light to fly.
And BTW if it is written permission that you need, you will need original signed/stamped letters not Faxed or emailed copies.

 

[Fincherchad]

I was on a carnival cruise from February 26 to March 5 and took my Mavic pro with me. I took it on and off the ship at every port with no problems. The cruise left out of Galveston Texas and the first port was Key West second port was Freeport and the third port was Nassau.

 

[Fyodor_Ivanov]

What I am saying is that the cruise line is being polite in saying you need a letter from each of the destinations in order to use the drone at that destination. What they are not saying is that it is not an easy task!

Just read all the other threads on the forum about guys who have asked small airfields for permission to fly near to the airfield. According to all the stuff I have read it is legal if you notify them that your going to fly, you just need to get a verbal clearance. Yet I have not seen anybody say that they got the go ahead without doing a lot of ground work.

It's the same all over the world. Joe Drone Pilot wants to fly but needs permission so he calls or writes to Mr. Bureaucrat.
Mr Bureaucrat thinks about it for 10 seconds and thinks "Drone = possible problems", so he just says no.

What would you do if you were in his shoes? You have a nice cushy job for the last 20 years and some guy wants permission to fly a drone that most likely is harmless but on the other hand could end up being front page news.

What do you think will happen if you crash the drone into
a tour helicopter while flying in Aruba or St Thomas. The first thing your going to do is whip out your permission letter with Mr Bureaucrats signature and stamp on it. You will suffer whatever the law dictates and Mr. Bureaucrat is out of a Job.

All I am saying is that when you are told to get a permission letter or get verbal permission your going to find that it is very difficult to find anybody who is going to write it and sign it or verbally vouch for it. It is hard in the USA and it's even harder in most foriegn countries.

I am not saying you should not try, I certainly would give it a try but do not expect a letter to arrive in the mail with ease or that you will walk up to customs and just get a green light to fly.
And BTW if it is written permission that you need, you will need original signed/stamped letters not Faxed or emailed copies.

I hear ya man, I'm gonna give it a go anyway. I'm emailing all my drones info to the guy including my FFA UAS# (I know it doesn't really meant anything in other countries) and we'll see what happens. Based on his email it sounds like they compile a list of passengers and drones for customs use at ports..

I've heard, and seen in video, from many people in multiple forums that they were able to fly at some of these islands. I've also heard stories of people getting their drones taken and It not given back until the end. I think I'll be ok but who knows we'll see. I'll be happy to report back if I run into any snafus along the way.

 

[cobra46]

This is from Carnivals website:
"Exemptions (items for port use only)The following items may be brought on board but can only be used off the ship, for port use only . All items must be stored in the guest’s stateroom. Drone Cameras.................... " (more listed)

Here is a link to Carnival's web site prohibited items. Towards the bottom specifically talks about drones: Carnival Corporation Prohibited Items | Carnival Cruise Lines

.

From these two pages it appears even Carnival can't figure out if drones are permitted.

 

[mstevens]

From these to pages it appears even Carnival can't figure out if drones are permitted.

Agreed.

Of course, it's only their job to determine if they let you their ship with something, or if they let you access it during the cruise. It's not really their job to determine what you can or should do while ashore. It would helpful to their passengers if they were to do that, but as soon as they say something is OK and it turns out not to be, some passenger is going to give them a ration of grief.

 

[Oingo Boingo]

And stay away from the seafood buffet

 

[Robbyg]

I hear ya man, I'm gonna give it a go anyway. I'm emailing all my drones info to the guy including my FFA UAS# (I know it doesn't really meant anything in other countries) and we'll see what happens. Based on his email it sounds like they compile a list of passengers and drones for customs use at ports..

I've heard, and seen in video, from many people in multiple forums that they were able to fly at some of these islands. I've also heard stories of people getting their drones taken and It not given back until the end. I think I'll be ok but who knows we'll see. I'll be happy to report back if I run into any snafus along the way.

Good luck, there is a chance that in some of these islands they might have already a established path for getting your paper work done ASAP. When it comes to getting things into other countries my brother always says the best way is just to stuff the dam thing into the pile of underwear in your suitcases and walk with confidence. Unfortunately my Job position does not allow me to take those chances.