Flying in the clouds - advice needed!

[RickAung]

This was only 250 ft it was fun. Never lost VLOS. More like fog this time. No moisture.

Beautiful

 

[MavicMikeK]

Hi All,
I don't mean to be the bad guy here, but the rules in the U.S. are that a drone must operate 500 feet under vertical cloud altitudes and 2000 feet horizontally from clouds. I am aware that there is a difference between flying in rain and fog at low altitudes. Also aware that mountains create a conundrum in that you could take off from "above" a cloud. Please be safe because it only takes one mistake to ruin it for everyone.

@BlueRidge. I agree and even though I'm no saint I am trying my best to fly my new drone within all the AMA and FAA legal rules for a variety of reasons. I don't want to interfere with low flying small passenger planes or risk flying over highways and my drone falling out of sky hitting a car full of kids. My home is in a double NFZ because I'm close to a small airport and an Air Force Base 15 miles away which has their flight zone extended over my property. DJI does let me fly up to 400' even within the 2 NFZ's over my home. I have only gone straight up a couple times and did a couple of 360's from 400' up and it was pretty nice. Most of my flying however is at my Clubs AMA 80 acre field which I drive 20 miles to get to and even there my altitude is still limited to 400 feet. I've never flown beyond line of sight even with my wife as my visual observer while I'm watching my ipad FPV screen. I've been tempted, don't get me wrong, but my common sense and concern for lives prevents me from making stupid decisions. I've seen idiots on YouTube that don't give a hoot about things like that which will surely ruin it for law abiding flyers. Very sad but that's part of what they'll have to live with when they kill someone and have to face jail time and huge fines. No matter how good you fly the drone could fail and you could lose control. Everyone should think about it before taking undo risks!

 

[Milo187]

Hi All,
I don't mean to be the bad guy here, but the rules in the U.S. are that a drone must operate 500 feet under vertical cloud altitudes and 2000 feet horizontally from clouds. I am aware that there is a difference between flying in rain and fog at low altitudes. Also aware that mountains create a conundrum in that you could take off from "above" a cloud. Please be safe because it only takes one mistake to ruin it for everyone.

It's amazing to me how we just gloss over the rules of flight ... BlueRidge is 100% correct and the reason why the laws are there in the first place to PROTECT manned flights!
Just watch the evening news and you can see stricter rules are coming eventually as more and more boneheads fly too close to an airport, over people or any number of dangerous situations.

 

[afarkas]

Since we fly everyday that it Rains , we consider Moisture to be on the Outside of the Drone but even after just 4 minutes in a light downpour you will have water inside the battery , if not a small Koi pond at the bottom.

This is the reason why we decided to make the Wet Suit for the Mavics as we did not expect that to be the result..

You also have the Power Button which is also very succeptible to Water and once that starts blinking , the battery is compromised.

But Moisture itself is not an issue and cause for alarm but flying in the Rain is.
So if you open the battery up an see water inside you were rolling the dice with the drone gods.

Are we talking about CONDENSATION, or WATER LEAKING IN? CONDENSATION is when water changing its state from gas to liquid due to temperature difference... It can happen only on surfaces their temperature is lower than the temperature of the air containing water...
In rain water can LEAK INTO the battery, but can not CONDENSATE, as the battery is hot as well and definitely hotter than the humid air and also, there is no air circulation in the batter...

 

[Phantomrain.org]

Are we talking about CONDENSATION, or WATER LEAKING IN? CONDENSATION is when water changing its state from gas to liquid due to temperature difference... It can happen only on surfaces their temperature is lower than the temperature of the air containing water...
In rain water can LEAK INTO the battery, but can not CONDENSATE, as the battery is hot as well and definitely hotter than the humid air and also, there is no air circulation in the batter...

When we first got the Mavic 2 zoom we purchased it to fly Tandem filming the Phantom 4 Wet Suits In the Storm, however after just 4 minutes in the rain, the Mavic 2 Battery started blinking and when we landed it , there was actual water that had seeped into the entire bottom of the batttery Department, after just 4 minutes in the pouring rain. That was when I realized that there was no seal at all on that battery to stop rain from getting inside.

So we designed the Mavic 2 Wet Suits so we can run the drone under a running Faucet in the sink and know the battery and the Power Button are being protected .

 

[afarkas]

Ok, so you are talking about leaking... I was reacting about CONDENSATION. Two different physical phenomenons

When we first got the Mavic 2 zoom we purchased it to fly Tandem filming the Phantom 4 Wet Suits In the Storm, however after just 4 minutes in the rain, the Mavic 2 Battery started blinking and when we landed it , there was actual water that had seeped into the entire bottom of the batttery Department, after just 4 minutes in the pouring rain. That was when I realized that there was no seal at all on that battery to stop rain from getting inside.

So we designed the Mavic 2 Wet Suits so we can run the drone under a running Faucet in the sink and know the battery and the Power Button are being protected .

 

[Guido De Spirt]

Hi All,
I don't mean to be the bad guy here, but the rules in the U.S. are that a drone must operate 500 feet under vertical cloud altitudes and 2000 feet horizontally from clouds. I am aware that there is a difference between flying in rain and fog at low altitudes. Also aware that mountains create a conundrum in that you could take off from "above" a cloud. Please be safe because it only takes one mistake to ruin it for everyone.

Hi guys , just to avoid misunderstandings: I was in Cariboos, an authorised elisky area in British Columbia, and I flew with the permission of the helicopters pilots who could not take off because of the low clouds and asked me to check at which altitude there was clear sky.

 

[kilomikebravo]

..and asked me to check at which altitude there was clear sky.

Guido: In pilot speak that is, "how high are the tops?"

 

[Guido De Spirt]

Thanks, I’m Italian and my English is not that good [emoji3][emoji3]

 

[FLPilotshark]

@THE CYBORG - Did you see this video, these Mavic drones can freeze on ya mate if you are not careful!!! I myself never have to worry about that since I live in the Sunshine State

Look what happened to me flying tru clouds in Canada... one propeller iced and the MP came down very fast rotating. Fortunately no damages as it crashed on soft snow :

Guido De Spirt- That's truly amazing that your Mavic did crash into a million pieces. How high in Altitude do you think you were when you lost control?

 

[Guido De Spirt]

Probably abt 300 mt. However the other 3 props were ok and were keeping the falling speed at reasonable level

 

[Bobby for a Day!]

It's amazing to me how we just gloss over the rules of flight ... BlueRidge is 100% correct and the reason why the laws are there in the first place to PROTECT manned flights!
Just watch the evening news and you can see stricter rules are coming eventually as more and more boneheads fly too close to an airport, over people or any number of dangerous situations.

I live in a major city and have yet to see news on people in the USA flying close to airports, over people or and dangerous situations you state. I think we need to fly responsible, but not gin up factious Drone events! I’d say you need to stay in your backyard

I’d think you’d be hard pressed to post links to six dangerous Drone events that happened in the last six months in the USA?

Drone on........

 

[RickAung]

Hi,

Recently London Gatwick Airport (LGW) was closed over an alleged drone incident. One worker on leaving the LGW airport reported seeing a drone. LGW was closed and all flights diverted or grounded causing much inconvenience to thousands and considerable expense. Police became involved and put up their own drones adding to the confusion. Police eventually arrested a completely innocent drone owner which was widely covered by the news services and newspapers. The drone owner and his wife were completely innocent and suffered major trauma from the handling of them by the police and news media. They were released without charge having been held for at least one night in police cells. Eventually, LGW called in the military with their anti-drone equipment. Drone enthusiasts (a long way away up north in Yorkshire) were interviewed by the media and told them it would have been impossible for any reasonably large drone (other than a small toy) to fly near an airport due to the software preventing it. Anyone over-riding the software would need a lot of software knowledge to do so. Despite much investigation, it has not been possible to prove there was a drone. No-one else, to my knowledge, has been arrested in connection with the 'incident'. There was footage of a drone shown on the media but no proof of time or date to show it related to the 'actual incident'. The police theory is there was someone in the airport who was relaying information on airport authorities actions to another person(s) that flew the drone. The one good thing that came out of this is the authorities are now well aware that they are not at all prepared for any possible terrorist attack near airports using drones. I relate this so all drone users are aware of how incredibly sensitive people are to drones and we should do our utmost to protect our hobby against any unnecessary draconian measures to prevent our flights. Commercial aviation is international so all of us could be affected wherever the drone flying may occur. Enjoy your drone flying!

 

[Bobby for a Day!]

Hi,

Recently London Gatwick Airport (LGW) was closed over an alleged drone incident. One worker on leaving the LGW airport reported seeing a drone. LGW was closed and all flights diverted or grounded causing much inconvenience to thousands and considerable expense. Police became involved and put up their own drones adding to the confusion. Police eventually arrested a completely innocent drone owner which was widely covered by the news services and newspapers. The drone owner and his wife were completely innocent and suffered major trauma from the handling of them by the police and news media. They were released without charge having been held for at least one night in police cells. Eventually, LGW called in the military with their anti-drone equipment. Drone enthusiasts (a long way away up north in Yorkshire) were interviewed by the media and told them it would have been impossible for any reasonably large drone (other than a small toy) to fly near an airport due to the software preventing it. Anyone over-riding the software would need a lot of software knowledge to do so. Despite much investigation, it has not been possible to prove there was a drone. No-one else, to my knowledge, has been arrested in connection with the 'incident'. There was footage of a drone shown on the media but no proof of time or date to show it related to the 'actual incident'. The police theory is there was someone in the airport who was relaying information on airport authorities to another person(s) that flew the drone. The one good thing that came out of this is the authorities are now well aware that they are not at all prepared for any possible terrorist attack near airports using drones. I relate this so all drone users are aware of how incredibly sensitive people are to drones and we should do our utmost to protect our hobby against any unnecessary draconian measures to prevent our flights. Commercial aviation is international so all of us could be affected wherever the drone flying may occur. Enjoy your drone flying!

I had asked about USA? I’d also say that commercial jets fly at a altitude that DJI Drones can’t reach. Except on the grounds of a airport. FAA can’t enforce anyhow! No IFF.

 

[wagslarr]

Yes, you are correct. It was a Spark. As for flying in the clouds I’m not talking about thick clouds. Just clouds, not the dense type, the size or a car or bus that drift past fairly quickly.

What do you mean by “risk airplane coming out of the cloud”?

Are you saying that all the YouTube videos footage flying through clouds has involved the user risking his drone?

It is illegal to fly in the clouds per the FAA PArt 107 rules.

 

[RickAung]

I had asked about USA? I’d also say that commercial jets fly at a altitude that DJI Drones can’t reach. Except on the grounds of a airport. FAA can’t enforce anyhow! No IFF.

Hi, Bobby, I know you referred to the USA but what happens in other countries is likely to affect drone pilots worldwide. I was a helicopter and B747-400 pilots and the latter have to land at airports and that is where drones could be a hazard and LGW went down into meltdown over this incident. Just providing a cautionary warning so we don't get over-regulated.

 

[Bobby for a Day!]

It is illegal to fly in the clouds per the FAA PArt 107 rules.

What about the majority that aren’t 107’s? I’ve really not seen clouds where I fly low enough to fly in anyway!

 

[Bobby for a Day!]

Hi, Bobby, I know you referred to the USA but what happens in other countries is likely to affect drone pilots worldwide. I was a helicopter and B747-400 pilots and the latter have to land at airports and that is where drones could be a hazard and LGW went down into meltdown over this incident. Just providing a cautionary warning so we don't get over-regulated.

I flew F-111’s out of RAF Upper Heyford in the late 80’s. Biggest hazard was birds. I bet it’s still the case! Can’t remember a Drone strike? LOL

 

[DJI DelBoy]

Just for everyone’s information I’m flying my drone around mountain peaks in Mauritius. The mountain peaks are more of a hazard to planes than any drone could be - I fly within about 50m vertically from the top of the peak. Any plane flying that close is just looking for an accident to happen.

 

[MavicMikeK]

As a hobbyist there are still rules to follow to fly safe. If you're not in any class airspace that restricts your altitude you can fly to 400 feet in Class G airspace while remaining in visual line of sight, referred to as VLOS. Flying into a cloud at that low level would be a risk for your drone because it will mess with your sensors. It may also cause you to lose sight of the drone which would be illegal to fly. A "cloud" at that low altitude might be considered fog if your on flat ground and not on the side or top of a mountain. I've seen YouTube videos of drones flying above clouds and it looks heavenly. But when they attempted to come down the bottom sensors thought the drone was landing on the cloud vapor and resisted their attempts to land. Eventually it did come down but extremely slowly like when it's doing a precision landing from about 3 ft in the air. At this rate they were concerned the battery would run out and it would drop out of the sky.

Here is the FAA link to hobbyist class 336 fight rules.

Recreational Flyers & Modeler Community-Based Organizations

www.faa.gov