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Parachutes for flying within 5m of people

sashby4

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Oakville Ontario Canada
Hello. I have a mavic 2 pro and zoom. And I have an advanced license. This means I can fly within 5m horizontally of people.
the mavic 2 can be equipped with one of two approved parachutes by transport Canada and I can fly directly over people. Bit these parachutes are between $2k to $3.6k. Insane. Anyone have experience with these chutes? Are they worth the money? Do they really work?
 
Found THIS but he says it has to deploy at 62 feet or over.
And it's 2K.
No affordable solution right now. The problem is getting approval is expensive and in the case of the M2P there is no easy way to turn the motors off which is required for approval.
Bumping the switch with a solenoid takes too long - 2 secs - the drone can drop 64 feet.
So they have a complex hack to turn off the motors, which I don't know the details of.
In the US you can not get an over people waiver without one.
 
... these parachutes are between $2k to $3.6k. Insane. ... Are they worth the money? Do they really work?

The systems are designed to mitigate the two hazards associated with a UAS plummeting to Earth - whirly knife blades and falling anvils. The trick is to shut off the engines while bringing the vertical velocity to a level that the craft (anvil) will not seriously injure someone. The theoretical answer to your question 2 is a fairly simple one.

- What's the probability of getting caught violating the rule versus the cost? If it's a CN$50 fine (about ten cents in America, I think),and you don't lose your certification. You can pay the fine all day long. If, on the other hand, your drone license has value to you, and the fine is $4k, then you want the parachute.

- I can't speak to the Canadian legal system, but in the US, you would also consider the cost of injuring someone (or several somoenes), especially if you were acting in a reckless or negligent manner (which a violation of Governmental UAS rules would almost certainly be deemed to be, even if the crash itself was due to UAS malfunction). If you were doing so as part of a business, you could well lose your business. Even if the parachute didn't work, it's evidence that you were being as careful as possible (all other things being equal).

Personally, it's easier to not fly over (or close to) people.
 
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The systems are designed to mitigate the two hazards associated with a UAS plummeting to Earth - whirly knife blades and falling anvils. The trick is to shut off the engines while bringing the vertical velocity to a level that the craft (anvil) will not seriously injure someone. The theoretical answer to your question 2 is a fairly simple one.

- What's the probability of getting caught violating the rule versus the cost? If it's a CN$50 fine (about ten cents in America, I think),and you don't lose your certification. You can pay the fine all day long. If, on the other hand, your drone license has value to you, and the fine is $4k, then you want the parachute.

- I can't speak to the Canadian legal system, but in the US, you would also consider the cost of injuring someone (or several somoenes), especially if you were acting in a reckless or negligent manner (which a violation of Governmental UAS rules would almost certainly be deemed to be, even if the crash itself was due to UAS malfunction). If you were doing so as part of a business, you could well lose your business. Even if the parachute didn't work, it's evidence that you were being as careful as possible (all other things being equal).

Personally, it's easier to not fly over (or close to) people.
Yes valid comments. And yes agree that 100 cdn is like 10 cents us. Lol. I’m pretty sure fines are steep and risk of injury is high. So it is worth the investment. Or as you say I will just stay more than 5m horizontally from people and I am good!
 
- What's the probability of getting caught violating the rule versus the cost? If it's a CN$50 fine (about ten cents in America, I think),and you don't lose your certification. You can pay the fine all day long. If, on the other hand, your drone license has value to you, and the fine is $4k, then you want the parachute.
I certainly agree with you.
However you mention probability and then discuss outcomes.
In the US under normal circumstances the probability is super low.
You are far more likely to injure someone with your car.

Not meant to be anything more than my observations.
 
Why exactly does anyone need to fly within 5M of people? It's not good PR for our endeavor of choice. It may make observers uncomfortable. And what purpose does it serve? Why not just fly the location (if legal in the first place) at a time when there are no passersby? I'm guessing this is for a commercial assignment, as I can't see justifying this for recreational flying. Consider the impact of this action. The pilot's mission is suddenly affecting the experience of those not involved with the mission. Kids might enjoy it. Adults may be put off. Others may feel threatened. All this for a commercial endeavor, because commerce suggests that the mission trumps the possible negative reaction of passersby? In other words, acceptable collateral impact?

And then of course there's risk. You might invest in some form of safety technology. But what if that fails? Is there ANY justification for put others at risk for a casual purpose? Everyday we read about lost aircraft. This is imperfect technology -with inherent unanticipated outcomes. Consumer drones frequently fail due to a variety of factors. Commercial craft could be lethal simply due to their weight. I see no acceptable justification for risking the safety of anyone who has not agreed to the potential risk of a mission or project. You can't even take a stranger's photo without permission.(except for approved journalism) So perhaps this is for approved journalistic or news recording?

I never fly around people or traffic. I don't allow my projects to impact anyone not part of my endeavor. Please explain the purpose or justification of unilateral action. Respectfully submitted.
 
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I completely agree. And I generally never fly over people. This is for a promotional video for a popular public farm in our area. The owner wants video of his property wot the hustle and bustle of people over a period of a year. Four separate visits. Then I create a nice video he can post on his website. I even told him this is risky and I would prefer to fly at 5pm once he closes and people are gone. So we see where this goes. I’m really considering just not accepting the job due to the risk. Hence the reason I’m looking into parachutes. Two have been approved by transport Canada. Bit I saw reviews on them and they are not 100% safe. So not really sure.
Thnaks for the comments.
 
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I completely agree. And I generally never fly over people. This is for a promotional video for a popular public farm in our area. The owner wants video of his property wot the hustle and bustle of people over a period of a year. Four separate visits. Then I create a nice video he can post on his website. I even told him this is risky and I would prefer to fly at 5pm once he closes and people are gone. So we see where this goes. I’m really considering just not accepting the job due to the risk. Hence the reason I’m looking into parachutes. Two have been approved by transport Canada. Bit I saw reviews on them and they are not 100% safe. So not really sure.
Thnaks for the comments.
Your response appreciated. I was asked to fly over a crowded bike park w kids etc. I flew straight up over my own head and recorded from an angle far enough from everyone for safety. I was hired by the bike park -a county owned property
 
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cool, sounds good.
that was what I was thinking as well....take some video from the side of the fields or from over the trees out of the way of people...this will be so much safer. No job is worth the risk to personal safety, want to make sure we (Mavic Pilots) convey a good image to the public on drone operators, that we care, we are safe, and we follow the laws set out by the government.
 
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I'm guessing that as everyone present is an employee, they will all be advised of your project. Perfect.

When I recorded video at the bike park, everyone who visited that day was advised that video crews would be working on a shoot (to help promote funding for the bike bike). Location insurance had also been secured.
 
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Your better off buying a better quad that is listed on transport Canada site as being certified for flight over people. To do that with a mavic is stupid and irresponsible. Mavic 2 are the most unreliable machine. I've I have a zoom and a pro both had motor failures. First was caught on startup and second wasnt so lucky and quit 250 get up coming in to land and landed fifty ft from me. I will say if that would have struck someone very strong chance that it would have been fatal. Do not fly over people if your doing surveillance mavic 2 is not the drone for you. You could probably get away with a mavic mini 2 honestly they are a bullet proof machine, os2, and not bad for camera not great but acceptable. Plus the 249 weight gets you out of alot of laws provided your not flying reckless. As far as achute with 1600 bucks or more is a waste. Alot of the testing of even the certified ones have extreme failure rates. Check transport Canada site and check the certified/reliable drones.
 
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