RANT against cruise ships

[Ty Pilot]

Yep. Because that's a significant expense (and a major hassle) they neither want nor need. So the obvious result, they simply ban them all.

It's a completely appropriate business decision, which any of us would make if it were our job to manage that business (if we were being honest and doing our job).

Have you ever tried to simply determine, with a high degree of certainty, the regulations for a visitor to fly a drone in a foreign country? It many places, it's a difficult, time-consuming, squishy, uncertain, stunningly bureaucratic task. Imagine having to know those rules for a dozen locations, and determine with certainty that every drone-toting passenger has checked all the boxes (and most of them won't, so they would have to be "managed" and de-escalated and ultimately they would be denied)....you would have to hire a lot of people dedicated to accomplishing this (including lawyers). It would be very expensive, in a business (cruise ships) that (as best I can tell) is a very low-margin operation to begin with. Never going to happen because it would be an insane choice for their business.

You can get all huffy and vote with your feet if you want, angrily informing them that they've lost your business, but they won't notice - there are plenty of people waiting in line behind you with a fistful of money ready to pay for your spot. The number of drone-owning customers they will lose will not move the financial needle and will not even be noticed.

Rant if you want, "punish" them by going elsewhere. It won't make any difference.

Bingo!!!!! Well said.

 

[lookout]

Great post.........Here is my "Cruise-Drone" experiences........

#1 - 3 years ago we went on a NCL cruise ......we flew to Hawaii and got the cruise there...NCL has a
"NO DRONE" policy....I called the cruise line and spoke to a Representative and I asked he if I could bring my drone, not to use on the ship but on the excursions, I had checked the local laws. She advise me that I would not be allowed to bring my drone on board, so asked why...this was her "DUMB AS ROCKS REPLY" - because the
cruise line did not want me infringing on the other passengers privacy by photographing them. I told her that
I would NOT be flying my drone on the ship, just on the excursions. Again she said the if I tried to get on the ship that my drone would be taken from me and returned at the end of the cruise. So you are telling me that the reason that I could not bring a drone on board was because the ship did not want me to infringe on other passengers privacy by "photographing" them.....she replied "YES"......so I said what about the guy waling around
taking photos with his camera....she was dumfounded and had no answer for me......
Well I took my Mavic Air on board and got some great clips on all the excursions...I went right though
security [ x-ray ] and it never showed up...it was packed in a back pack...folded with a camera and two lens.

#2 - last week we took a cruise again on NCL.......this time I took my Air 2s.....packed in my back pack with a camera and two lens and sailed right through security at four different ports........

In three week we are going on Holland America and I WILL be taking my Air 2s again.......

Sounds like the same dumb as rocks it's spying on my window.

 

[hiflyer201]

. I have even given up on photo tours. But the places that these Seabourne tours go to would be amazing for drones.

Dale, Thanks for the reply. I sure agree with you on drones and travel. To paraphrase an old saying, one drone shot is worth a thousand photos.

 

[mobilehomer]

Sounds like the same dumb as rocks it's spying on my window.

Not necessarily. I have friends staying on the Gulf Coast this summer. They had a drone hover outside their 25th floor condo, looking inside for several minutes. Very disturbing. So there ARE those maroons.

 

[apmadoc]

One can only imagine how many idiots who don’t know what they are doing would fly their drone:

• While the ship is underway in strong winds
• Taking off from a balcony
• Crash into passengers trying to land
• Crash into some part of the ship, causing damage
• Drop their drone down the exhaust vents
• Land their drone in some very inaccessible part of the ship which would require crew time and effort to recover.

 

[mike foy]

As some of you may suspect, my wife and I are travel junkies, and have traveled the world in our lifetime (100 + countries). So I get a lot of travel brochures in the day's mail. Today's mail comes from Seabourne Cruise Line. It seems that they are doing adventure cruises all over the world and they really are good locations, although very expensive. I decided to dig down into the their website to see if drones were permitted and there it was, way down on the list of PROHIBITED items which will be seized on the gang plank and returned after you are definitely off the ship at the final dockage. On the probited list of guns, dynamite, big knives, etc. were DRONES. So here, amongst all of the most beautiful drone scenic places on the face of earth no drones are permitted.

I know, I know, all of you out there who are so protective...will give me all of the reasons for this But still, come on. We know when it is safe and when it not to fly above an iconic site for a birds eye view and the shot of a lifetime. It really burns me up, and of course, removes that cruise line from any consideration whatsoever of ever paying a dime to them for travel.
Rant over.

Dale
Miami

I have written to a number of cruise lines, including Disney, I have had one cruise line say that they can make an exception for me (part 107 certified) and Disney are passing my email on to the relevant departure, may I humbly suggest that we blitz the cruise companies asking why drones are on the prohibited list along with guns and fireworks

 

[mike foy]

One can only imagine how many idiots who don’t know what they are doing would fly their drone:

• While the ship is underway in strong winds
• Taking off from a balcony
• Crash into passengers trying to land
• Crash into some part of the ship, causing damage
• Drop their drone down the exhaust vents
• Land their drone in some very inaccessible part of the ship which would require crew time and effort to recover.

It’s not that drones are not allowed to be flown from the ships, it’s that they are prohibited from being taken onboard

 

[drhitch54]

Any time you want to watch a drone video from some distant port of call, all you have to do is go to airvuz.com....they have video droned every inch of the planet! Ok, so it's not YOUR own drone perspective, but it's really good footage.

Oh, and I suspect that a cruise line will quarantine your drone until you go ashore. But they may feel a bit responsible for you if you get locked up in some foreign jail.....

 

[apmadoc]

There's no reason but ignorance, <900g are just flying compact cameras, not weapons.

If I can't bring my camera you won't see my money, that's all you have to say before leaving.

Seriously? Falling from the sky, a drone could easily achieve a speed of 100mph (160kilometers/hour). Would you like 800g hitting you at that speed?

 

[apmadoc]

It’s not that drones are not allowed to be flown from the ships, it’s that they are prohibited from being taken onboard

Exactly, if you allow passenger to carry them onboard, you can could the minutes before some idiot flies one from the ship

 

[kpmac]

I hear you, Dale. This appears to be a common rule on cruise ships.

The problem is that for every thoughtful and considerate person (such as yourself), there are 10 other individuals who would put their drone up in the air at the most improper location and time.

So punish the offenders not the compliant.

 

[mike foy]

Exactly, if you allow passenger to carry them onboard, you can could the minutes before some idiot flies one from the ship

I suppose there are always some. Maybe they should just allow part 107 pilots

 

[JoelP]

I can also see why they might ban drones for a group tour. In that case they are often moving a collection of people along at a reasonable pace to be on schedule. This would not be the case for privately booked tours. It would seem reasonable to ban use from the ship and group tours, but not so much for his private tour. I expect if an individual got sideways with the local law the cruise ship would be within their legal right to leave him behind at that port.

 

[apmadoc]

So punish the offenders not the compliant.

example, say someone flys their drone while onboard, or even during a cruise shore excursion. When attempting to land, they fly the drone into a fellow passenger, hitting the, in the face, causing a serious cut and a scar. That passenger would want to sue, they could sue the passenger, who operated the drone, but let’s face it, they aren’t going to get much from them.

The problem is the cruise line, having the deep pockets, would be the target of the lawsuit. Hence the ban on bringing them onboard,

 

[apmadoc]

To further complicate things, if it’s a cruise ship doing overseas ports, each country has different rules, permit requirements, restrictions for specific areas like historic landmarks, etc. I had to go through the process to get a permit for the UK. Canada requires I file a permit request before each trip to Canada, detailing information about locations, dates, etc. While this might be manageable if I was going to one country for a week, for seven countries in seven days, it would be a massive task.

I am fortunate to live in Michigan where we have a state law on the books that prohibits county or local municipalities from enacting their own drone ordinances. Michigan is a state where you are allowed to fly a drone within the state forests and parks,

Other states have a much more of a patchwork set of regulation.

Now imagine this magnified across multiple countries

 

[Paul Stocum]

As some of you may suspect, my wife and I are travel junkies, and have traveled the world in our lifetime (100 + countries). So I get a lot of travel brochures in the day's mail. Today's mail comes from Seabourne Cruise Line. It seems that they are doing adventure cruises all over the world and they really are good locations, although very expensive. I decided to dig down into the their website to see if drones were permitted and there it was, way down on the list of PROHIBITED items which will be seized on the gang plank and returned after you are definitely off the ship at the final dockage. On the probited list of guns, dynamite, big knives, etc. were DRONES. So here, amongst all of the most beautiful drone scenic places on the face of earth no drones are permitted.

I know, I know, all of you out there who are so protective...will give me all of the reasons for this But still, come on. We know when it is safe and when it not to fly above an iconic site for a birds eye view and the shot of a lifetime. It really burns me up, and of course, removes that cruise line from any consideration whatsoever of ever paying a dime to them for travel.
Rant over.

Dale
Miami

I’m a Licensed drone pilot, professional photographer and an ex cruise ship employee for 5 years back in he 80’s to 90’s. The last thing I would want to see is a passenger left with the ability to decide a safe time/location on a ship to fly.

 

[PhoebeSnow]

I agree with Dale. Most of us who seriously fly our drones know to check for all regulations regarding where and when we can fly. Even in foreign countries. My drone goes with me everywhere. No cruise or vacation is desireable to me if I have to leave my drone at home.

 

[Marjonkay]

How many of these people are realistically going to register, answer any test and pay a fee to fly their drone from a cruise ship on the one day its in port in that country?
Few or none.
How many will even bother checking (or care) to see if flying is banned where they're berthed? Very few.
So most, if not all the flights are illegal per local regulations.

Cruise ships are likely covering their backs legally in not facilitating illegal operations every single day.

As some of you may suspect, my wife and I are travel junkies, and have traveled the world in our lifetime (100 + countries). So I get a lot of travel brochures in the day's mail. Today's mail comes from Seabourne Cruise Line. It seems that they are doing adventure cruises all over the world and they really are good locations, although very expensive. I decided to dig down into the their website to see if drones were permitted and there it was, way down on the list of PROHIBITED items which will be seized on the gang plank and returned after you are definitely off the ship at the final dockage. On the probited list of guns, dynamite, big knives, etc. were DRONES. So here, amongst all of the most beautiful drone scenic places on the face of earth no drones are permitted.

I know, I know, all of you out there who are so protective...will give me all of the reasons for this But still, come on. We know when it is safe and when it not to fly above an iconic site for a birds eye view and the shot of a lifetime. It really burns me up, and of course, removes that cruise line from any consideration whatsoever of ever paying a dime to them for travel.
Rant over.

Dale
Miami

I get increasingly annoyed by all these new rules and regulations affecting the majority due to a few incompetent idiots in the minority! I recently went on a Marella cruise to the Caribbean and then stayed in Barbados for a week - I applied through Barbados Government online portal for permission to fly giving dates and places I intended to fly - uploaded proof of Pilot ID and drone operator ID and Liability insurance (via drone cover club in UK) and was given permission to fly - so I abided by the rules and was allowed to fly - Simple solution - make similar rules worldwide and fine any unothorisednpilots £1,000’s or $1,000’s. And it will soon be nipped in the bud. Similarly there has been talk in UK of limiting passengers on airlines to maximum two drinks each before they can board the plane? Why? Simply enforce a new law if you’re disruptive on a plane you’re banned for flying for ten years and fined £1,000s or $1,000’s that will soon stop it and penalise the minority that spoil it for everyone else!

 

[Paul Stocum]

As a licensed drone pilot, professional photographer, and 5 years experienced as a cruise ship employee, I fully understand and support the cruise line drone ban. For every responsible drone operator, there will be at least 3 idiots that won’t use common sense. We used to talk about how often people would seemingly unhinge their brain on vacation, in particular on a cruise. Then combine unlimited drinking on board, recipe for disaster.

As to the comment about photographers on board vs. privacy from drone captures. Photographers on board don’t take your photo without your active participation.

It is totally for liability reasons, and for the safety of the passengers. I don’t know if there is any blow back to the cruise line from illegally flying in a destination port, but that could be a possibility to consider. While in port, the ship is completely under the local rule of law.

 

[Aerophile]

Simple solution - make similar rules worldwide...

Get back to us after this "simple" proposal has been accomplished.