DJI Mavic, Air and Mini Drones
Friendly, Helpful & Knowledgeable Community
Join Us Now

Mavic 2 Zoom night shots

Not sure if licensed commercial dronies are allowed...? Or maybe seek a waiver, but quite a hassle for something that should be so simple.
Any night shot in the US needs a waiver from the FAA, a lot of people still ignore it unfortunately or they just don't understand the regulations. I see some photos on here from Philadelphia by the William Penn Statue which was shot during sunset or sunrise and over 500 feet.

To fly at night, you need a waiver from the FAA that requires a light on your drone that can be seen from 3 statute miles away. But those shots look close to sunset or sunrise, I think as long has he had a strobe light or light on his drone for those photos and he's within a 30 minutes before sunrise or 30 minute after sunset, he's fine.

The next thing is that shot was over 400 feet, but he could have been within a 400 foot radius of the city all building which permits him to fly an additional 400 feet above it. But then it would require that he get permission from City Hall in Philly to do it these days.

I know the police are cracking down on drones and started confiscating them in Philly.
 
Last edited:
Any night shot in the US needs a waiver from the FAA, a lot of people still ignore it unfortunately or they just don't understand the regulations. I see some photos on here from Philadelphia by the William Penn Statue which was shot during sunset or sunrise and over 500 feet.

To fly at night, you need a waiver from the FAA that requires a light on your drone that can be seen from 3 statute miles away. But those shots look close to sunset or sunrise, I think as long has he had a strobe light or light on his drone for those photos and he's within a 30 minutes before sunrise or 30 minute after sunset, he's fine.

The next thing is that shot was over 400 feet, but he could have been within a 400 foot radius of the city all building which permits him to fly an additional 400 feet above it. But then it would require that he get permission from City Hall in Philly to do it these days.

I know the police are cracking down on drones and started confiscating them in Philly.


The OP and the person you quoted are NOT in the US. Keep in mind we are an INTERNATIONAL community and our laws/rules don't apply outside of our borders.

Also Recreational Operators CAN fly at night in the USA without the need for a waiver (currently).

In the US if you're flying under Part 107 rules you need to request and be grated ~107.29 (Daylight Operation) from the FAA. Also it's important to note that your ~107.29 can NOT be applied to an Airspace Authorization/Waiver ( LAANC approval for instance). You can't mix and match waivers unless they are written to include other provisions.
 
The OP and the person you quoted are NOT in the US. Keep in mind we are an INTERNATIONAL community and our laws/rules don't apply outside of our borders.

Also Recreational Operators CAN fly at night in the USA without the need for a waiver (currently).

In the US if you're flying under Part 107 rules you need to request and be grated ~107.29 (Daylight Operation) from the FAA. Also it's important to note that your ~107.29 can NOT be applied to an Airspace Authorization/Waiver ( LAANC approval for instance). You can't mix and match waivers unless they are written to include other provisions.


Am I missing something here, no one in the US is allowed to fly at night unless they have a waiver. If you're talking about 30 minutes after sunset or 30 minutes before sunrise with a strobe light that can be seen 3 statue miles away. Sure, but if you fly at night, you need a wavier.

I just took the FAA test and it's one of the things that we studied for and it does not matter if you're certified or not.

So you're saying you can fly at night free and clear if you a recreational user? That does not sound right to me at all. They just went over this at the FAA symposium recently, it's all online.
 
Am I missing something here, no one in the US is allowed to fly at night unless they have a waiver. If you're talking about 30 minutes after sunset or 30 minutes before sunrise with a strobe light that can be seen 3 statue miles away. Sure, but if you fly at night, you need a wavier.

Yes sir you're missing something... A Part 107 operator is required to have a Daylight Waiver ~107.29 to fly at night but NOT hobby.

Please show me in the regulations where Hobbyist are restricted from flying at night. Also show me where/how a Hobbyist has the option for any waivers what-so-ever.

I just took the FAA test and it's one of the things that we studied for and it does not matter if you're certified or not.
You took the test for Part 107.... none of that applies to Hobby/Recreational operators at all. The test for Hobby/Recreation has not been created/released yet.

So you're saying you can fly at night free and clear if you a recreational user? That does not sound right to me at all. They just went over this at the FAA symposium recently, it's all online.

I can ABSOLUTELY assure you that, as of right now, there are no restrictions for Hobby Flights at night. I encourage you to spend some time looking over Hobby Regulations vs Part 107 Regulations. They are many similarities but they are not identical and sometimes we need to know the differences especially if we are going to post replies to questions/comments re:Regulations. The devil is in the details and we need to make sure we are giving the best and most accurate advice possible.

Here's an excellent primer for Hobby Regulations.

But let's error on the side of caution and not use a member's "Cliff's Notes" version and go directly to the FAA's webpage to get their Cliff's Notes of the regulations.
Recreational Fliers (FAA)

Part 107/Certificated Remote Pilots
 
Yup, recreational pilots can fly at night while 107 ticket holders need a waiver (for now but it's due to change.). Weird, huh?

"One thing to keep in mind: even if you’re not covered by Part 107, there is such a thing as the responsible use of drones. The FAA regulations will not protect you from liability if your drone ends up crashing and damaging your neighbor’s car or hurting an unwitting pedestrian. Flying over your neighbors’ backyards at night is sure to raise a few eyebrows, and you probably don’t want cops knocking at your door in the name of having fun."
 
Lycus Tech Mavic Air 3 Case

DJI Drone Deals

New Threads

Forum statistics

Threads
131,081
Messages
1,559,640
Members
160,065
Latest member
mlaut