Has anybody ever flown in a national park?

[black_magic100]

Yes I know it is illegal and no I have not done it before, but I'd be lying if I wasn't extremely tempted. My motto with flying drones has always been to be safe and responsible, which generally means NEVER flying over people, never going LOS, landing when helis are in the area, and notifying respective ATC's if necessary among a few other things. It seems so unnecessary to completely ban drones from national parks because they "disturb the peace". To a point I can understand that as drones can be fairly irritating to some people, but if nobody is around I really don't see the harm. What is your guys opinion on this?

 

[black_magic100]

This should probably be in general discussion. Not sure how to move it on mobile though. Mods help! [emoji16]

 

[macoman]

The reason they ban drones is not because there are responsible pilots that fly well and within the law. But like always in life, there are few that will trespass the line and will disturb the peace of animals and visitors. This is why the ban exist. People who violated all kinds of things it's why laws and more restrictions will be create it to even make less enjoyable flying.

 

[trelliz]

Even if there are no humans around aren't you going to disturb the peace of the animals?

 

[ksmusa]

Even if there are no humans around aren't you going to disturb the peace of the animals?

Yes

 

[Robert Mitchell]

There is no good reason for the NP ban, and it was supposed to be temporary. The reasoning against disturbing people and wildlife is nonsense based on the fact that Harley Davidsons and snowmobiles haven’t even been considered for a ban. There is a ban because they haven’t taken the time and effort to integrate them where, and under circumstances they would cause no harm.

That said, there IS a ban against launch and recovery, and you take your own chances of fines and confiscation, if you choose to violate that.

Flying over portions of the park are still perfectly legal as long as you are outside the boundaries. I would strongly advise that you use care and common sense if you choose to take that route.

 

[FASTFJR]

I was flying in NP's long before any rules were on the books. I was mainly interested in filming waterfalls

 

[beachcombing]

Yes I know it is illegal.... What is your guys opinion on this?

My opinion is don't do it.

If you think that the policy should be changed, work through the NPS and get the policy changed.

Otherwise, follow the rules.

 

[Robert Mitchell]

Even if there are no humans around aren't you going to disturb the peace of the animals?

So Harleys, cruising right through the middle of The Great Smokey's, or snowmobiles cruising through Yellowstone, disturb animals less than a 1.5 lb drone?

 

[trelliz]

So Harleys, cruising right through the middle of The Great Smokey's, or snowmobiles cruising through Yellowstone, disturb animals less than a 1.5 lb drone?

certainly not less

 

[Robert Mitchell]

certainly not less

We'll just have to disagree on that one, but my point remains. If they are using that as the reasoning, they are being hypocritical by ignoring the other.

I think everyone knows that drones could be integrated safely and with little impact, if they simply took the time and effort to do so.

 

[black_magic100]

Even if there are no humans around aren't you going to disturb the peace of the animals?

I never understood this. Unless you are legit flying your drone in front a bears face to the point where you are about to hit it I don't see the issue. In my experience, 99% of animals don't seem to mind drones at a reasonable distance. To them it's probably just a weird looking bird, lol.

I would argue that humans walking through trails are significantly more stressful to wildlife as they can't determine if you are a threat or not thus we should ban humans from walking on the trails and instead force people to enjoy the wildlife via a drone because it's much safer and less stressful.

The point I'm trying to make is that it seems extremely odd that they would ban drones in a place where drones were literally made to explore. The more the FAA restricts locations the less people are going to care and start disregarding the rules.

I like to consider myself a very responsible pilot, but it sucks when the FAA bans places just to ban them. [emoji25]

 

[black_magic100]

There is no good reason for the NP ban, and it was supposed to be temporary. The reasoning against disturbing people and wildlife is nonsense based on the fact that Harley Davidsons and snowmobiles haven’t even been considered for a ban. There is a ban because they haven’t taken the time and effort to integrate them where, and under circumstances they would cause no harm.

That said, there IS a ban against launch and recovery, and you take your own chances of fines and confiscation, if you choose to violate that.

Flying over portions of the park are still perfectly legal as long as you are outside the boundaries. I would strongly advise that you use care and common sense if you choose to take that route.

Thank you for the advice. Sounds like I will have to stop at the edge of the border where the NFZ begins, fly my drones into the mountains, get the shots I want and then go about my day. Literally makes no sense that you can use the airspace, but you can't launch from within the park.

 

[beachcombing]

I like to consider myself a very responsible pilot, but it sucks when the FAA bans places just to ban them.

This is an NPS policy not an FAA ban.

You all seem stuck on the noise issue, bu that is only one of the elements cited in the policy.

For those who are actually interested in the policy and not idle speculation, you can read it here. NPS Policy Regarding UAV

 

[Mavflyer]

This is an NPS policy not an FAA ban.

You all seem stuck on the noise issue, bu that is only one of the elements cited in the policy.

For those who are actually interested in the policy and not idle speculation, you can read it here. NPS Policy Regarding UAV

Nice link. I particularly like this part, "The likely increase in the use of these devices in units of the National Park System will undoubtedly impact park resources, staff, and visitors in ways that have yet to be identified."

 

[Robert Mitchell]

This is an NPS policy not an FAA ban.

You all seem stuck on the noise issue, bu that is only one of the elements cited in the policy.

For those who are actually interested in the policy and not idle speculation, you can read it here. NPS Policy Regarding UAV

Sure. I've read every word of that nonsense document, back in 2014 when it was published.

You do actually understand that the ban was a TEMPORARY solution, and this document directed the NPS to find ways to INTEGRATE them into the parks? 4 years later... crickets.

The amount of paranoia, overreaction, and bureaucratic overkill is simply astounding to anyone who actually reads this.

 

[dpeagle]

i can't believe all these posts and all these threads on "why can't i fly in a national park" and they all read the same. listen, it has nothing to do with disturbing people, it has very little to do with disturbing wildlife, it has ALL to do with the potential risk of wildfires. you people just don't understand how easy it is to start one and how hard it is to fight one.

 

[forsythem]

I would argue that humans walking through trails are significantly more stressful to wildlife as they can't determine if you are a threat or not thus we should ban humans from walking on the trails and instead force people to enjoy the wildlife via a drone because it's much safer and less stressful.

The scent left behind by a human (or any other animal not normally there) is far more disruptive to most animals than most drone use would be.

But any animal that perceives the drone as a threat would be affected. I've accidentally triggered a small flock of shorebirds to take off when I flew my drone too close - this obviously causes a disruption to their feeding and unnecessary use of energy for flight. However, this was on a dog off-leash beach, where dogs frequently chase the birds and do the same thing... so while I believe drones can be detrimental to wildlife, responsible flyers can cause far less disruption and damage than many, many other things humans do to animals.

 

[Robert Mitchell]

Thank you for the advice. Sounds like I will have to stop at the edge of the border where the NFZ begins, fly my drones into the mountains, get the shots I want and then go about my day. Literally makes no sense that you can use the airspace, but you can't launch from within the park.

Actually, my point was, that it is actually NOT ILLEGAL to fly over park airspace as long as you don't launch or recover from there. There is not a airspace restriction of any kind other than altitude restrictions over officially designated Wilderness Areas. This has come directly from the mouths of several park rangers to whom I have spoken. I just would caution that you would need to exercise good judgement before going that route, and It's usually not worth it anyway... especially if adhering to LOS requirements.
.

 

[Robert Mitchell]

i can't believe all these posts and all these threads on "why can't i fly in a national park" and they all read the same. listen, it has nothing to do with disturbing people, it has very little to do with disturbing wildlife, it has ALL to do with the potential risk of wildfires. you people just don't understand how easy it is to start one and how hard it is to fight one.

Many of the activities allowed within the parks pose a far greater risk of fire than a Mavic.