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

Police visit, re power station footage on Youtube.

There was a precedent set in the U.S. Supreme Court (1946) - a chicken farmer sued the U.S. Airforce for flying very low over his farm. The court ended up ruling that the defendant did not need to compensate the farmer for use of his airspace below 83 feet (25 m) because the planes did not fly below that height.

United States v. Causby - Wikipedia

With the increasing proliferation of drones, I suspect that this precedent will be tested more and more going forward
Thanks but i was looking for Aussie laws. US is very different. there used to be a saying that you owned the land and everything above to the heavens but i think that was only a bush lawyers view
i need the right info
 
  • Like
Reactions: Aussie Oldtimer
Aussie law is a slightly weird mash-up of US and UK law but much of civil law comes from Blighty.

This is what I wrote on the situation in the UK where the position on flying over private land is vague as it’s not been tested in the courts. The fact it’s not been tested shows that no one is yet too bothered about flights over private land.

However in the UK under civil law, at least on paper, flying over private land could be considered trespass or nuisance. Neither of which are a criminal offence so the police would have no power of arrest (unless they trumped up some kind of public order issue)

Note I do not know how much of it all applies to Aus law but may be a starting point for further research.

—-
Commercial aircraft always fall under the remit of the CAA.

English civil law is a nightmare - expensive and precedent led so until a particular circumstance is tested (usually at huge cost to each party) the outcome is uncertain.

It also uses words like ‘resonable’ in the strict legal sense. So for example the Civil Aviation Act states that landowners can expect to have ‘reasonable’ enjoyment if their land free from nuisance.

So, as an example, a farmer puts up signs on some remote fields which are not used for livestock saying ‘no drones permitted’. You overfly one at a height of 120m and a speed of 30kmh whilst he is in his farmhouse 2km away. He takes you to court and the judge has to decide whether the flight prevented his reasonable enjoyment of his land. The answer is probably not but it would cost me £££££ to defend the position just as it would cost the farmer ££££££ to prosecute. In the end rule 1 - don’t be a knob applies. Farmer turns up and asks you to move on; pack up and go (after all he may be more friendly with the local plod than you!).

Similarly - a country house has no signs up but a drone pilot spends an hour a day hovering over the garden at a height of 50m. After a week the homeowner has had enough and threatens court action. The pilot carries on citing various CAA drone regs that show he is flying legally (ie within the bounds of criminal law) etc and suddenly finds a very expensive civil writ on their doorstep. Were they preventing ‘reasonable enjoyment’? Quite possibly but again it is going to cost money to find out.

English lawyers love arguing over a point of civil law as it usually means a healthy pay cheque :).

I need to look more closely at the new police powers but they essentially extend things like public nuisance, breach of peace etc so if you’re being a knob in a public space (and by public I mean open to the public, not necessarily publically owned) they have greater powers to move you on or confiscate your equipment.
—-
 
Just checked and there is nothing about private property in the rules on the Can I Fly There App.
The rules menu is down the LHS.

There may well not be. There is not in the UK equivalent- private property would fall under general civil law breaches and nothing to do with specific drone regs.

The best analogy I can use, at least as far as the UK is concerned, is the reason you can’t fly over private land is the same reason you can’t pitch a tent in a strangers garden.

Neither are a criminal matter but both could breach civil torts.
 
Thanks for that.

I've seen both links you posted and I'm aware of the surveillance laws. Lots of people think you cant take video or photos of others in a public place.

I suppose I'm really after some definitions re who owns the sky but that is still up in the air (pun intended)

There are lots of wives tales but I'm still after facts. I've put a call into CASA but I'm still waiting.

With CASA currently reviewing drone use, I think we all need to err on the side of caution otherwise they will bring down some very heavy laws and we will end up in the same boat as the US where lots of restrictions are in place

We are very lucky here in Oz and I want to keep it that way. The nfz apps are very useful.
 
  • Like
Reactions: deleted member 877
Thanks for that.

I've seen both links you posted and I'm aware of the surveillance laws. Lots of people think you cant take video or photos of others in a public place.

I suppose I'm really after some definitions re who owns the sky but that is still up in the air (pun intended)

There are lots of wives tales but I'm still after facts. I've put a call into CASA but I'm still waiting.

With CASA currently reviewing drone use, I think we all need to err on the side of caution otherwise they will bring down some very heavy laws and we will end up in the same boat as the US where lots of restrictions are in place

We are very lucky here in Oz and I want to keep it that way. The nfz apps are very useful.

Agree 100%. I take every opportunity to remind people about the regulations and that CASA is watching the Recreational Drone pilot community like a hawk. Unfortunately, there are always going to be the bad apples who would spoil it for the rest of us, and the fact that the Professional Drone pilot community is constantly in CASA's ear whining about non-professionals isn't helping either.

In regard to flying over private property, do you have valid reasons to do so, or are you simply curious? IMHO pushing CASA for feedback will probably turn out to be a waste of time due to the fact that they haven't yet published definitive regulations covering this activity. The most common scenario for flying over private property is when a CASA certified professional is paid to do so by the owner of the property - e.g. Real Estate photography or Infrastructure Inspection services.
 
Just curious.

Unless its govt land (military, buildings, nat parks etc) everything is privately owned. I assume the vast majority of land is privately owned
 
Just curious.

Unless its govt land (military, buildings, nat parks etc) everything is privately owned. I assume the vast majority of land is privately owned

Not sure about that but I have found that it's pretty easy to find large areas of deserted beach and, if you're lucky enough to live in Queensland, it's legal to fly in National parks.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Aussie Oldtimer
Not sure about that but I have found that it's pretty easy to find large areas of deserted beach and, if you're lucky enough to live in Queensland, it's legal to fly in National parks.
full time travelling around Oz and currently near Cairns. yes heaps of govt (publicly owned land) everywhere.
 
Vast areas of WA (and other states) are either lease hold or reserves. The leases are only for specific purposes. (ie grazing)

Our local council was going to ban UAVs in their parks but had legal advise they did not have the power to do so.
 
  • Like
Reactions: deleted member 877
No-one owns the airspace.
Does Qantas call you to ask if they can overfly your house?

Very much depends on the country and the altitude. I own the airspace above my house up to around 1000’ when it then comes under the CAA’s jurisdiction :)

UK civil law is such fun :)
 
Lycus Tech Mavic Air 3 Case

DJI Drone Deals

New Threads

Forum statistics

Threads
130,601
Messages
1,554,302
Members
159,608
Latest member
carlos22