I am a Snowbird visiting Gulf Shores, AL for 3 months this winter. I brought my two drones to enjoy while down here: Phantom 4 Pro and Mavic Pro. I asked a Police Officer where I can fly my drones here and he said; No where. I looked up the drone ordinance for the city which were adopted in 2018. It read like they were absolutely paranoid about drones. Stating they were frightening people, spying on people, used for voyeurism, potential danger to people, The list goes on. Using that thinking, why dont they ban cars and binoculars? If I was a voyeur, all I have to do is sit on the beach and watch all I want!
Since I am not a lawyer, I wanted to post the last part of their Ordinance. It appears to me that this last statement negates everything they stated about not flying drones. Please see the bold statement below. Aren't we "expressly authorized as long as we follow FAA rules'? Or can they over ride the FAA rules?
What do you think?
Sec. -3-169. -Violation of Division As Offense; Affirmative Defenses. Any person violating any provision of this Division shall be guilty of an offense and upon conviction, shall be punished for each offense by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for a period not exceeding six (6) months, or both. The following shall constitute an affirmative defense to any criminal action for violation of Section 3-165 (b). The burden shall be on the operator to show, by a preponderance of the evidence, that: (a) The operator held a permit issued pursuant to Section 3-168 to operate in an area that is otherwise prohibited by Section 3-165(b); or (b) The operator was operating the UAS at the direction of a governmental agency, such that it should be considered a public aircraft; or (c) The operator was expressly authorized by the FAA to operate a UAS in city airspace and that the UAS was operated for lawful purposes and in a lawful manner
Since I am not a lawyer, I wanted to post the last part of their Ordinance. It appears to me that this last statement negates everything they stated about not flying drones. Please see the bold statement below. Aren't we "expressly authorized as long as we follow FAA rules'? Or can they over ride the FAA rules?
What do you think?
Sec. -3-169. -Violation of Division As Offense; Affirmative Defenses. Any person violating any provision of this Division shall be guilty of an offense and upon conviction, shall be punished for each offense by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for a period not exceeding six (6) months, or both. The following shall constitute an affirmative defense to any criminal action for violation of Section 3-165 (b). The burden shall be on the operator to show, by a preponderance of the evidence, that: (a) The operator held a permit issued pursuant to Section 3-168 to operate in an area that is otherwise prohibited by Section 3-165(b); or (b) The operator was operating the UAS at the direction of a governmental agency, such that it should be considered a public aircraft; or (c) The operator was expressly authorized by the FAA to operate a UAS in city airspace and that the UAS was operated for lawful purposes and in a lawful manner
