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JimCunn

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Joined
Aug 3, 2022
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Age
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Location
Tenessee
I'm in southwest Tennesse and am ignorant of drones, but interested in the Air 2S (or any other recommended recreational drone with a good camera in the $1000-$2000 price range).

What do I need to do to be legal?
I am still too dumb to know what questions to ask. I dearly love anything to do with flight, particularly antique Piper taildraggers and the biomechanics and flapping flight mechanics of azdharchid pterosaurs.
 
Welcome to the forum.
Please and do be sure you have read our guidelines.
I hope you will find our site helpful and look forward to any input , photo's/video's you might post .
Don't be shy and ask anything if you can't find it by searching . Thumbswayup
 
Welcome to the forum.
Please and do be sure you have read our guidelines.
I hope you will find our site helpful and look forward to any input , photo's/video's you might post .
Don't be shy and ask anything if you can't find it by searching . Thumbswayup
Well, I'm still too dumb to know what to search for.
Here's a photo of me on a sandbar in the Mississippi River taken about 55 years ago. My mirror has grown somewhat more wrinkledy-faced and fatter since then, but I'm still in my late 20s (I wish).JimC-Cub.jpeg
 
Greetings from Birmingham Alabama, welcome to the forum!
 
Well, I'm still too dumb to know what to search for.
Here's a photo of me on a sandbar in the Mississippi River taken about 55 years ago. My mirror has grown somewhat more wrinkledy-faced and fatter since then, but I'm still in my late 20s (I wish).View attachment 152760

Look for the FAA's Recreational UAS Safety Test (TRUST). It's required for all recreational UAS flights. It's very simple and you won't find much that will be new if you've been flying, but it's the place to begin. Beyond that, have a look at the courses and information offered by The Pilot Institute.

Welcome. That's a wonderful photo with the J3 on the sandbar.
 
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Since we're looking at J3 photos, I'll toss out my favorite. This is Eleanor Roosevelt in March 1941 at Moton Field in Tuskegee, Alabama with C. Alfred “Chief” Anderson in the front seat. She was there to help promote the then controversial program to train Black fighter pilots. After Mrs. Roosevelt toured the training facility with the politicians and military brass, she insisted on taking a flight and further insisted it be with a Black pilot. Her Secret Service detail was strongly against it, but she held out. It was supposed to be a brief circuit around the pattern, but she and Chief were in the air for half an hour.

There's a very nice museum at Moton Field, operated by the National Park Service. It's worth a visit.

I love the grin on her face. She apparently liked to shake things up a bit and was clearly enjoying herself that day.

tuskegee_flight-1.jpg
 
That's one of my favorite photos as well. I'm a lifelong fan of ER. She was an extraordinary lady. And we also owe a debt of gratitude to the Airmen.

That particular J3 is rumored to still exist. Only the fabric, wings, fuselage, and engine have been replaced (but it retains the original dataplate - reminds me of George Washington's hatchet).
 
Welcome to Mavic Pilots! :) Enjoy the forum! Thumbswayup
 
Since we're looking at J3 photos, I'll toss out my favorite. This is Eleanor Roosevelt in March 1941 at Moton Field in Tuskegee, Alabama with C. Alfred “Chief” Anderson in the front seat. She was there to help promote the then controversial program to train Black fighter pilots. After Mrs. Roosevelt toured the training facility with the politicians and military brass, she insisted on taking a flight and further insisted it be with a Black pilot. Her Secret Service detail was strongly against it, but she held out. It was supposed to be a brief circuit around the pattern, but she and Chief were in the air for half an hour.

There's a very nice museum at Moton Field, operated by the National Park Service. It's worth a visit.

I love the grin on her face. She apparently liked to shake things up a bit and was clearly enjoying herself that day.

View attachment 152765
Nice bit of history…she was a real character. The grin? 10/10👍
 
I'm in southwest Tennesse and am ignorant of drones, but interested in the Air 2S


Welcome from the Hampton Roads area of Virginia, USA. We have a Member's Map in the Upper Right of the Title Bar.


As an Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Pilot, the FAA term for a Drone Pilot, there are a couple of Legal Things you need to do…

You will need to get your TRUST Certificate. You can get that at the Pilot Institute Web Site (FREE…) . The A2S weighs more than 250-grams (0.55 pounds) so you will be required to register your Drone.

Link to the Pilot Institute Web Site (FREE…)


Link to the FAADroneZone (Optional for Drones under 250-Grams…)


Since you live in Tennessee, there are specific laws and rules for you to follow, please check the link below for all the Rules and Laws that are in effect in your neck of the woods and it also links you to some of the Best Places to Fly in your area… Also, if you travel on vacation, visit friends, and relatives in other parts of the country, check back here so you do not run afoul of the law.


Here is some Good Old Fashion Advice for Newbes…

Do not let the excitement of the moment get the best of you. When you are going out to fly, do it slowly and deliberately. Get used to a set procedure and even practice it.

There are so many things I could write but these are the highlights that I feel need mentioning.

Plug in your phone/tablet into your controller; turn on the Controller and DJI Fly App (if it does not start on its own…). On the Drone, open the front legs, then open the back legs, then remove the Gimbal Cover.

The Gimbal is the most delicate item on the Drone and banging or bumping can damage it. I also fastened a short "Remove Before Flight" ribbon to the cover so it's more noticeable and I do not forget to remove it…

Turn on the drone and watch it come to "life." Watching the Gimbal go through its self-check is almost like watching a kitten or puppy opening its eyes for the first time…

Place the drone down (preferably on a Landing Pad) while it finishes its self-test (collecting satellites, etc…).

Check your battery status (Phone, Drone, and Controller), check the Signal Strength, by now the Controller should have reported it updated the Home Point.

Lift off, 4-5 feet (1-1/2 meters) or so, hover a bit, check the controls (move the drone a bit forward, back, left, right, yaw left and right). By now, your Controller will probably report again, Home point Updated.

If you go out in a rush and race thru your start up and take off before the drone has finished it prep, it may update its Home Point over that pond or that old tree you are flying over and in your excitement, you'll fly the drone long past it Low Battery point and when it engages Return to Home and lands in the pond or in a tree; it will be all on you…

Now go have fun, learn to fly the drone by sight before you try to fly it out a distance depending on the video feed, FPV.

I would also advise you to use YouTube and watch a lot of the Videos on flying and setting up the Drone. When it is too dark, too cold, or too wet, you can "fly it vicariously" through YouTube. Also watch some of the Blooper Drone Videos and learn how not to fly your "New Baby."

On the off chance you do get the Air 2S, below is the link to all of the downloads offered by DJI for the Mavic Air 2s, including the User Manual.

After you read the Manual, read it again, you will be surprised what you missed the first time and you will be better prepared for that first "scary moment…"


Happy, Safe and Legal Droning…
 
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Welcome to the forum! I don't think you can go wrong with an Air 2s, I love mine! Although I am itching to get my hands on the Mini 3 Pro, I was skeptical at first but my curiosity got the best of me and I ordered one again...
Good luck! Ton of info on here and many helpful people.
 
Welcome to the forum from Chicago the Windy City.
Some year's ago, I was in the same position as you. So I took a course with the National Drone School.
Had to take a exam, Flying, Controlling, Maneuvering, and learning about FAA Rules & Regulations.
Learning from the ground up. FLY SAFE
 

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