Oh Boy... some one is in trouble...

[dixter]

Hollywood Man Arrested For Crashing Drone Into LAPD Chopper

Authorities say it's the first criminal case in the nation in which a person has been charged with unsafely operating a drone.

losangeles.cbslocal.com

 

[THE CYBORG]

OOPS

 

[itsneedtokno]

Holy ?

 

[Aeroforce 1]

Hollywood Man Arrested For Crashing Drone Into LAPD Chopper

Authorities say it's the first criminal case in the nation in which a person has been charged with unsafely operating a drone.

losangeles.cbslocal.com

Yeah hopefully they'll throw the book at him. This is the kind of extremely dangerous behavior that gives law-abiding drone pilots a bad name. Who the heck flies their drone to a crime scene at night and knowing there's a police helicopter en route?!?!

 

[PacificSkyDreamn]

As a new drone recreational pilot in the San Francisco Bay Area, low flying helicopters are my biggest worry. I alway check the FlightRadar24 app on my phone before taking off looking for any - especially medical evac flights and law enforcement since both have a tendency to fly lower than corporate/business helicopters in this area.

Also the LA Times is reporting that this guy is being charged with a federal misdemeanor offense that carries a maximum sentence of one year in federal prison.

The fact that he knew he hit the helicopter and didn't go to authorities probably will not sit well with a judge/jury.

 

[Scottalmas]

What's a bit confusing to me from the video news story is they seem to be showing two different drones throughout the piece. Did anyone else pick up on that or am I wrong about that?

 

[careless]

Looks like a Phantom flying and he was holding a Mavic Pro controller.

 

[Jet skier]

Looks like a Phantom flying and he was holding a Mavic Pro controller.

I caught that to only to me it looked like a inspire

 

[Formosa Straight]

What's a bit confusing to me from the video news story is they seem to be showing two different drones throughout the piece. Did anyone else pick up on that or am I wrong about that?

I think it is irrelevant really. Most news agencies are not subject matter experts and just grab indicative footage. They really are just reporting a story and not compiling evidence. Hope the guy gets what is coming, very irresponsible. But I was a bit dismayed with the subjective bit about if the drone had hit the main rotor it would have brought the helicopter down. No facts there at all. I suspect had the drone hit the main rotor there just would have been more parts of the drone raining back down. On the bright side though, it does show that if a drone hits a commercial aircraft the result is not sudden death to that aircraft and all onboard but rather some dented panels which is what we have been suspecting. Regrettably that does not fit the narrative the press wants to portray so it won't get much hearing.

 

[tca]

A real Dumb ***!

 

[cgmaxed]

i HAD A NEIGHBOR COMPLAIN ABOUT ME FLYING MY DRONE AT NIGHT AND A POLICE HELICOPTER ARRIVED ON SCENE. I was FAA registered recreational and flying with anti-collision lighting. Once I heard the helicopter, I dropped my altitude to just above the tree line , about 70 ft. The helicopter, kept following me , so I kept moving away from it. I didn't realize they were trying to catch me or find me. I thought they were looking for a robber or drug dealer or something. I followed the FAA rule to stay away from manned aircraft, thus I was safe, no laws broken. They ended up just looking at my registration and FAA card. I also had several printed copies of the FAA websites laws, rules and statutes. The police left without incident. I didn't even get a warning. They sure did waist a lot of money though. Sending a police helicopter to track down a drone. They were being reckless, if you ask me. They also probably spent 20,000 dollars of tax payer money flying a chopper with fuel costs , maintenance and pilot fees. They had no clue what the FAA drone laws were. I actually had to spend my time educating the police department. No charges were filed. They were just being a bit overzealous.

 

[ralphie039]

Its idiots like that make it bad for the rest of us.

 

[ldallara-air2]

i HAD A NEIGHBOR COMPLAIN ABOUT ME FLYING MY DRONE AT NIGHT AND A POLICE HELICOPTER ARRIVED ON SCENE. I was FAA registered recreational and flying with anti-collision lighting. Once I heard the helicopter, I dropped my altitude to just above the tree line , about 70 ft. The helicopter, kept following me , so I kept moving away from it. I didn't realize they were trying to catch me or find me. I thought they were looking for a robber or drug dealer or something. I followed the FAA rule to stay away from manned aircraft, thus I was safe, no laws broken. They ended up just looking at my registration and FAA card. I also had several printed copies of the FAA websites laws, rules and statutes. The police left without incident. I didn't even get a warning. They sure did waist a lot of money though. Sending a police helicopter to track down a drone. They were being reckless, if you ask me. They also probably spent 20,000 dollars of tax payer money flying a chopper with fuel costs , maintenance and pilot fees. They had no clue what the FAA drone laws were. I actually had to spend my time educating the police department. No charges were filed. They were just being a bit overzealous.

I had the same thing happen to me, only no police, just a black op helicopter, no markings. he dropped down to 100 ft straight on top of me, scared the ( Mod Removed Language ) out of me.
I think they have fun doing it.

 

[Mrmund]

What's a bit confusing to me from the video news story is they seem to be showing two different drones throughout the piece. Did anyone else pick up on that or am I wrong about that?

Three, plus two different controllers...
It was probably a mavic, they said they were picking up grey plastic parts off the ground

 

[Thomas B]

Hollywood Man Arrested For Crashing Drone Into LAPD Chopper

Authorities say it's the first criminal case in the nation in which a person has been charged with unsafely operating a drone.

losangeles.cbslocal.com

Multiple posts with pilots getting caught and fined already here. The newspaper incorrectly stated that it was the first one in the US... just anti drone hype.
Try a search of the forum for links to the other articles.

 

[maelstrom]

But I was a bit dismayed with the subjective bit about if the drone had hit the main rotor it would have brought the helicopter down. No facts there at all. I suspect had the drone hit the main rotor there just would have been more parts of the drone raining back down.

As a retired professional helicopter pilot, I’d say that the claim about bringing down the helicopter is very plausible. Helicopter rotor blade tips are sometimes moving close to the speed of sound so hitting a drone could do considerable damage.

 

[nielsenpablito]

Why would they “raid” his house? I get the fact that he’s not the smartest but justifying a raid?

 

[hiflyer201]

Photographing anything newsmaking is the culture in Los Angeles..and so are helicopters. There are usually at least 2 TV news helicopters at the scene of any police activity. It's a bad mix for drones but I somewhat understand the temptation. This is air ambulance helicopter that I saw at the local airport. The word was "drone" but I've never seen anything about it in the news

 

[MROJAS]

As a retired professional helicopter pilot, I’d say that the claim about bringing down the helicopter is very plausible. Helicopter rotor blade tips are sometimes moving close to the speed of sound so hitting a drone could do considerable damage.

Would hitting a bird (a dove for example) with the main rotor, bring a helicopter down?

 

[dozzn]

Would hitting a bird (a dove for example) with the main rotor, bring a helicopter down?

Larry Bird?? Probably