Frustrated finding places where I CAN fly: B4U Fly app

[Malmp2]

So I have been traveling to some awesome places where it would be super cool to fly but I always check the B4U Fly app first to see if it’s a no fly zone. It seems there are no fly zones EVERYWHERE! Like where CAN I fly?
Examples: outside Vegas, Pebble Beach and all along A1 south, Palm Springs, Palm Desert....even near my home in Chicago are no fly... the map shows the circle you can’t fly in and seems it’s always where I am! Yikes...frustrating to bring your drone on trips and find it never comes out of the case! What to do?

 

[PhantomFandom]

So I have been traveling to some awesome places where it would be super cool to fly but I always check the B4U Fly app first to see if it’s a no fly zone. It seems there are no fly zones EVERYWHERE! Like where CAN I fly?
Examples: outside Vegas, Pebble Beach and all along A1 south, Palm Springs, Palm Desert....even near my home in Chicago are no fly... the map shows the circle you can’t fly in and seems it’s always where I am! Yikes...frustrating to bring your drone on trips and find it never comes out of the case! What to do?

Well many of the areas you mentioned are either large urban areas or tourist hot spots. In both of those areas there is one thing you can certainly expect nearby. Hint...airports.

So the advice I can give you is to

• Move farther away from the airport.
• Check other apps like AirMap (my favorite) to make sure you are getting accurate information. In AirMap you choose which type of flying you are doing (commercial vs hobby) and you also get granular control of which specific rules/guidelines to map for you (i.e. heliports, hospitals, etc...)
• For the ultimate reference, forget the apps and check the current VFR Sectional chart for the area. Also take note of any NOTAMs and TFRs.
• Think about getting your Part 107 certification. With that, you can fly in areas closer to airports as long as you get LAANC clearance to the appropriate altitude for that grid box.

What I can say is that I have never had an issue flying in areas that I wanted to. I fly in Philadelphia all the time (safely and legally). This week I even did a very brief and low altitude flight right in downtown Brooklyn NY, and we all know how NYC has a major issue with drone flights. BTW, I was totally legal per the FAA regulations, and that's the authority that has jurisdiction!

 

[DoomMeister]

B4UFly is the pits and is being revamped by a third party entity.

Use AirMap or Kittyhawk to find if you are in a good area or not. Both allow for future planning.

 

[Malmp2]

Thank you for the great reply! Deleted B4U Fly app and loading AirMap. Will follow your advice!

 

[DoomMeister]

B4UFly is being updated by the company that made Kittyhawk and it will be geared toward Recreational Pilots was as Kittyhawk is more for commercial 107 pilots.