Mini 4 Pro Harting Down Ridge Glides

[AeroJ]

A nice seasonal incursion into what NT consider 'their airspace' in the Hampshire Hills, avoiding all the Red Kites, all the sheep, all the trees and all the ramblers. And the car parking charges. Couple of examples of largely unevidenced manned aviation ignoring all their rules.

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Harting Down, 700 ft

Harting Down, 700 ft

kuula.co

No AI. Scored by me.

 

[GFields]

Nice video

 

[Cymruflyer]

Could not see the aircraft you said was only 100ft above the ridge. However, from the sound, that did not seem like it was as close and low as you think it was. Most people vastly underestimate the height an aircraft is, to them.

As to the legality, you don't know if they were just taking off from a field or on finals, to land in one. Plus, as long as you are outside controlled airspace and away from buildings, animals and people on the ground, you can be right down on the deck and fly at 10ft above the ground if you so wish.

 

[AeroJ]

Well there were people and animals on the ground, and planes and heli's are not meant to be low over parks and rec type areas like this one was. It didn't appear to be doing a TO or landing. Very frustrating that the camera didn't get it, but what can ya do ? :/

 

[Cymruflyer]

Well there were people and animals on the ground, and planes and heli's are not meant to be low over parks and rec type areas like this one was. It didn't appear to be doing a TO or landing. Very frustrating that the camera didn't get it, but what can ya do ? :/

Check the CAA regs for the exact wording. Large gatherings of people, you cannot overfly, you must fly around. A few walkers on the ground, like I saw from your drone, means you just need to skirt around them when flying lower. The area you filmed, is open country and that means you are allowed to fly lower if you wish too.

With that said, altitude is a pilot's friend because if you suddenly have an engine issue, you have plenty of altitude to lose as you sort out the problem. So for the most part, smart pilots prefer to be up there, it just gives you more time to sort out an engine issue or setup for an outlanding if the situation of an engine out, occurs. Down low, you only have seconds, 3,000ft up, you have a good while to get sorted.

I am from Wales and when I lived back home, I would often fly my aircraft close to the ridge of the Brecon Beacons. Obviously not super close, but there were often walkers as I flew a hundred or two feet above and off to the steep side of that ridge. That was perfectly legal to do, despite what anyone on the ground might have thought.

Take a look at the UK CAA regs and you might find that the pilot you saw, was doing nothing illegal.

 

[AeroJ]

Take a look at the UK CAA regs and you might find that the pilot you saw, was doing nothing illegal.

You may well be right about that - but my objection to all this is the sheer senselessness of it. If there is going to be rule that confines drone pilots to 400 ft, there should be another one that confines manned aviation to 500 ft+ wherever drones could be !

 

[Cymruflyer]

You may well be right about that - but my objection to all this is the sheer senselessness of it. If there is going to be rule that confines drone pilots to 400 ft, there should be another one that confines manned aviation to 500 ft+ wherever drones could be !

No because a drone is the lowest on the totem pole. And is just about impossible to see from any manned aircraft due to it tiny size in the sky. Trust me, even full size aircraft easily get lost in background clutter when you fly and are looking for one that you know might be there from a radio call.

Why in the world would you think a pilot should expect drones to be everywhere they wish to fly?