Night flying?

[PaulUK]

Just been out in back garden for crafty smoke and noticed that it's a beautiful clear sky with full moon quite low in the sky, was tempted to launch MA2 up to 400' and see if I could get some atmospheric pics of moon with village lights below, however 2 things prevented me:
1 - I've never flown a drone at night, so a bit nervous..
2 - Not sure if MA2 camera is up to it as I've read somewhere that it doesn't fare well in low light conditions
Any thoughts?

 

[vindibona1]

Do you have strobes? IMO strobes are essential for flying, day or night.

From a photographic standpoint you would probably have to boost your ISO and consequently induce some noise. Having an editing program with some noise removal features is helpful.

 

[z28lt1]

I won't comment on any laws/regulations where you live for flying at night (since I know nothing about them), but outside of that.

1)Don't be afraid to fly at night. Can be easier sometimes because the lights on the aircraft make it easier to spot. The belly light will help you quite a bit, but the best solution (and what is required here in the US) are strobes for visibility for you and others in the air. The obstacle sensors won't work however, so make sure you know where you are and don't rely on the drone to keep you out of trouble.


2) The Air 2 sensor isn't ideal for night shots, and video usually isn't great and will be dark, but you can get some decent photos. The Smart "HDR" (not real HDR) thing does a pretty good job and can brighten things up quite a bit, which is nice, and you can use ABE and some processing to get some decent shots. I say decent, because the few I've seen/taken are overall nice shots and good to look at, but sometimes can have too much noise or lack of detail to be the type of shot you want to blow up and put on a poster.

 

[eEridani]

One essential caveat is to ENSURE you have full satellite coverage and HOMEPOINT is set before launching. Also, make sure the downlight is ON before liftoff (set to AUTO and is turning on, or set it manually ON).

Without GPS and light the drone will simply launch totally lost -- something like ATTI and the drone has no references to the ground and floats on the wind. So this isn't the time to rush a launch.

Having your drone lift off and immediately float away on the cool night breeze more or less uncontrollably is an awful feeling (up and down works - but trying to point it back to the launch point is extremely problematic).

 

[old man mavic]

@PaulUK you can fly your drone at night in the UK
biggest issue with flying in the dark ,is being able to judge where the drone is in relation to your surroundings ,so the risk of colliding with say a tree, or wires is greatly increased when you fly at night
even if you are familiar with the place you are flying it is much harder to judge distances in the dark ,and for me the risk to my drone just isnt worth it

 

[Don Testme]

I won't comment on any laws/regulations where you live for flying at night (since I know nothing about them), but outside of that.

1)Don't be afraid to fly at night. Can be easier sometimes because the lights on the aircraft make it easier to spot. The belly light will help you quite a bit, but the best solution (and what is required here in the US) are strobes for visibility for you and others in the air. The obstacle sensors won't work however, so make sure you know where you are and don't rely on the drone to keep you out of trouble.


2) The Air 2 sensor isn't ideal for night shots, and video usually isn't great and will be dark, but you can get some decent photos. The Smart "HDR" (not real HDR) thing does a pretty good job and can brighten things up quite a bit, which is nice, and you can use ABE and some processing to get some decent shots. I say decent, because the few I've seen/taken are overall nice shots and good to look at, but sometimes can have too much noise or lack of detail to be the type of shot you want to blow up and put on a poster.

From what I have read from a reputable administrator on this forum. If you a a recreational pilot, flying recreationally, night aniticollision stobes aren't required. Yes, they are required for 107, but the admin stated , for a recreational pilots, they are not. Maybe an admin will chime in, but I remember reading that.

 

[Don Testme]

@PaulUK you can fly your drone at night in the UK
biggest issue with flying in the dark ,is being able to judge where the drone is in relation to your surroundings ,so the risk of colliding with say a tree, or wires is greatly increased when you fly at night
even if you are familiar with the place you are flying it is much harder to judge distances in the dark ,and for me the risk to my drone just isnt worth it

Perhaps you can clarify something I read from and admin on this site. I already posted the question, but I thought I would direct it toward you, as and admin. Are recreational flyers absolutely required to use anti collision strobes when night flying? I recall one of the admin's , a while ago, they weren't actually required specifically for a recreational pilot at night.
??

 

[BethanyFerrell]

[DISCLAIMER: The blog post quoted below is from May 2020. Things might have changed since then.]

I can't tell you about Canadian or UK law, but for the US… this from Pilot Institute:

Recreational drone operations​

For recreational drone pilots, the pertinent laws on drone flight are summarized in the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018. Curiously there is no provision listed under §44809 (“Exception for limited recreational operations of unmanned aircraft”) that pertains to flying drones at night for recreational drone pilots.

By default, the lack of any restriction against recreational night operations means that it is allowed. Instead, the FAA recommends that recreational drone pilots “do not fly at night unless their drone has lighting that allows them to know its location and orientation at all times.”

Everything You Need to Know About Drone Anti-Collision Lights - Pilot Institute

We’ve always said that buying a drone is a huge investment. You won’t be spending a huge amount of money on just the drone, but a significant chunk of your expenses would probably go to accessories. And trust us – the right accessories can make a world of a difference in drone flight. One accessory

pilotinstitute.com

The law notwithstanding, I wouldn't dream of lifting off at dawn, dusk, or night without at the very least a proper white strobe on top, and I also use red and green navigational lights on the left and right rear legs. I use them even in daylight, which seems silly until you try it. (Those Firehouse Arc V lamps are soooo bright!)

DJI may say "imaging above everything" but I say safety is paramount.

 

[pilotinstitute]

Free training for you for night flying to get more comfortable: Part 107 Night Training Course - Pilot Institute.
As far as the MA2, it has a smaller sensor so it will definitely be harder to get good footage at night unless the area is artificially lit somehow.

 

[old man mavic]

if you are going to fly at night ,then having some strobes on the drone ,would of course increase your ability to see the drone ,as would turning on the light on the bottom of the drone if it has one, i have strobes on my MPP but they are not for night flying, legally you can fly at night ,but what would be the point ,other than just being able to get pictures of lights in the distance its not worth the risk to your drone ,but its up to the individual person what they choose to do and my comments are about the UK hobbyist rules ,other countries may be different

 

[thispilothere]

I fly an MA2 and was scared the first time too. And, while it's true that the sensor isn't as big as other drones, it can still take great night shots. I took photos of my local downtown at night to catch all of the Christmas lights - and again to capture the first major snow. Both photos and video look great, especially after some processing.

Make sure you know where the local power lines are.

 

[wardtom084]

To me flying at night is a lot of fun. Use the firehouse strobes. Just know your landscape.

 

[z28lt1]

From what I have read from a reputable administrator on this forum. If you a a recreational pilot, flying recreationally, night aniticollision stobes aren't required. Yes, they are required for 107, but the admin stated , for a recreational pilots, they are not. Maybe an admin will chime in, but I remember reading that.

The OP lives in the UK, so he has different rules and laws.

You are correct though, in the US, the current regulation does not specify anti-collision lights for recreational flyers, but you still need to see the drone and its orientation (and follow airspace rules). Not sure why the anti-collision lights are not required for recreation (yet), but they are an excellent idea, even if not required.

 

[wjkrysak]

I fly at night with strobes (Firehouse). I like to be familiar with my surroundings, and for me it is usually vertical flights to get interesting lighted areas. Good suggestions in the above comments. Take it slow and strobe.

 

[eEridani]

From what I have read from a reputable administrator on this forum. If you a a recreational pilot, flying recreationally, night aniticollision stobes aren't required. Yes, they are required for 107, but the admin stated , for a recreational pilots, they are not. Maybe an admin will chime in, but I remember reading that.

Strobes are required for night operations, at least according to the FAA guy I had a chat with; but we were mixing metaphors with night operations in controlled airspace, too; so 107 was top of his mind. But specifics come down to your Community Based Organization rules you fly under. If your CBO requires anti-collision light(s), then you must use them. E.g., here's what AMA says:

Night flying requires a lighting system that provides the pilot with a clear view of the model’s attitude and orientation at all times. Hand-held illumination systems by themselves are inadequate for night flying operations and must be supplemented with other lighting systems.

 

[PaulUK]

Lots of great advice and encouragement, thank you all.

 

[BigAl07]

Ok folks. . . . the OP is from Nottinghamshire ,UK so all responses need to be relevant to that location which is WELL outside of the FAA's jurisdiction.

In regards to "I read from an Admin"

I'm the only Admin here who is affiliated with the FAA.

With that being said:

• Recreational (~44809) operations require Anti-Collision lighting but the FAA does NOT give any specifications any further than that.
• Part 107 operations require Anti-Collision lighting that can be seen at a min of 3 Statue Miles and not other specifications are given on the lighting itself.

Let's get this thread BACK on track out of respect for the OP and if we have any other US/FAA Night flying questions start a new thread specifically for that.

Allen

 

[PaulUK]

I've looked into the CAA rules here in UK and although they don't specifically preclude night flying, some people argue that VFR is impossible at night so not allowed. Think I'm going to follow FAA rules and fit a single strobe light; the Lume Cube looks ideal and reasonably priced. Anyone know if they're available in UK?

 

[BigAl07]

I've looked into the CAA rules here in UK and although they don't specifically preclude night flying, some people argue that VFR is impossible at night so not allowed. Think I'm going to follow FAA rules and fit a single strobe light; the Lume Cube looks ideal and reasonably priced. Anyone know if they're available in UK?

It's always better to be SAFE than sorry

 

[PaulUK]

Anyone know if they're available in UK?

Yes they are, Amazon have them, one now on it's way to me!