Texas Pilot crashes drone into the world trade Center

[Paulark]

I swear I keep telling people I'm gonna write a book someday titled, "Never Underestimate the Power of Stupidity." It's one of the greatest forces in the known universe.

 

[Jamesz]

Instead of getting wedged, suppose it had fallen on someone's head from that height.

 

[Jamesz]

Instead of getting wedged, suppose it had fallen on someone's head from that height.

 

[Cobra193]

I blame social media for these types of incidents. He even said it in the 1st article, that he needed some footage to make his channel pop.

So many people are doing extremely risky things these days in the name of going viral, and it doesn’t matter what the punishment/risk is because to these people it’s worth it.

I would suggest, when things like this happen, to allow the authorities to delete the persons social media accounts that they’ve worked so hard to get followers on. THAT would be a perfect punishment AND deterrent if they thought they were risking losing all their followers.

 

[Video]

It's the post, all stories in the post are skeptical at best.

 

[Kentucky Ranger]

No damages, except there is now a lipo battery stuck on the building, which is probably a fire hazard.

I thought the same thing!
The drone can stay there and rot, but that lipo battery is a bomb, just waiting to go off.
not that it would blow a hole in the building, but when it decides to blow, it will be a fire hazard. I’m surprised the fire dept hasn’t stepped in, and removed the drone, then charge him for the cost.
How stupid he was, to think he could get such a shot, in such a cramped area.
If he knew what he was doing, he could’ve manually got his circular shot, without the least worry about hitting anything…

 

[Robert Prior]

He recorded a video of himself explaining that he was trying to film an "orbital shot" of a fountain and that it was going "too far and too fast" for him to stop.

I kiiiinda feel like that's ******** because you can interrupt the orbit pretty easily unless he was like in sport mode and doing a manual orbit.

And isn't it illegal to fly drones in Manhattan generally?

That's what the pause button is for, isn't it? Has DJI removed that on newer drones? Doesn't the Air 2S have one?

 

[sar104]

I've been a part 107 FAA quadcopter pilot since 2017 and have watched all my flying freedom go down the drain because of Casey and the rest of these people ruining my fun......

What has changed with respect to Part 107 operations since 2017?

 

[Alky1229]

There is no TFR covering that location and, even if there were, it would only be a DJI Geo authorization zone. You can self-authorize and fly in those zones with a verified account.

View attachment 132819

All of Manhattan as well as most of the city is a no fly zone for drones, hence why Casey Neistat got fined $10,000 a few years ago. Only a few designated areas in the 5 boroughs to fly

 

[sar104]

All of Manhattan as well as most of the city is a no fly zone for drones, hence why Casey Neistat got fined $10,000 a few years ago. Only a few designated areas in the 5 boroughs to fly

Manhattan may well have imposed sUAS operations restrictions, but that's not the same as a TFR, which is an FAA-imposed airspace restriction. I was responding to the assertion that it was covered by a TFR. It isn't.

 

[Vic Moss]

I've been friends with Vic for a good while and have read many of his posts here and other places and I'm pretty sure this is one topic we don't exactly agree on. I'm not sure that's accurate but I do remember him stating that the current wording/framework for Part 107 wouldn't allow "Flight Proficiency Demonstration" but there is an allowance (or was) for Flight Training. For instance I can TRAIN someone for Part 107 in Emergency Services even though they do not have Part 107. The training, although FOR getting Part 107, is flown under Recreational guidelines and that's how we've been able to (before LAANC) fly in controlled airspace for flight Training only.

@Vic Moss chime in and let's discuss

This thread is too long for me to read at the moment. What do we need to discuss?

 

[Robert Prior]

I have ALWAYS felt like a it was imperative to demonstrate some "practical flying abilities" as well. The license with no actual flight proficiency segment is only worth the paper it's written on. Show me you can fly when GPS drops out... show me you can fly the aircraft "visually" when your viewing device fails... show me you can safely fly it back to the launch point W/O hitting RTH and the list goes on.

You hit the nail on the head here

Up here you have to pass a Flight Check to get your Advanced sRPAS Certificate (along with an exam). You can get the Basic License just by passing an exam. The Flight Check is the expensive part of the process, costing $200 or more (an exam is only $10).

You must successfully perform the following exercises to pass the in-person Flight Review:​

• Describe the site survey process
• Describe emergency procedures that apply to flying a RPAS, including lost-link procedures and procedures to follow in the event of a fly-away, including who to contact
• Describe the method by which to inform Transport Canada of an incident or accident
• Successfully perform pre-flight checks of your RPAS
• Perform a take-off
• Demonstrate the ability to navigate around obstacles
• Demonstrate the ability to recognize distances
• Perform a landing

Prerequisites:​

• Small Advanced Exam - minimum overall result of 80%

I'm not certain what's involved in things like navigating around obstacles, because I'm only certified for Basic Operations (which are all I need).

Unlike the US, in Canada the certificate you need depends on the flying operation you want to do, not the purpose. You can do commercial work with a basic certificate as long as you are only conducting basic operations. OTOH, you need at least basic certification to fly any drone over 249 g.

If the idiot had been in Canada, he'd have needed his advanced certificate, as well as a drone certified to be near people (or over, depending on what he was doing*). Given proximity to airports/heliports and air traffic control zones, he'd also have required a Special Flight Operations Certificate for the flight.


*Legally, getting within 5 m of people makes the flight "over people".

 

[Biggie777]

Instead of getting wedged, suppose it had fallen on someone's head from that height.

Even if just the battery,which can happen on impact.

 

[PeteTheJack]

I thought the same thing!
The drone can stay there and rot, but that lipo battery is a bomb, just waiting to go off.
not that it would blow a hole in the building, but when it decides to blow, it will be a fire hazard. I’m surprised the fire dept hasn’t stepped in, and removed the drone, then charge him for the cost.
How stupid he was, to think he could get such a shot, in such a cramped area.
If he knew what he was doing, he could’ve manually got his circular shot, without the least worry about hitting anything…

Your post had me nodding approval.

 

[Macabre]

Overreaction because a flying vehicle crashed into the world trade center.
The topic is sensitive and if they didn't raise (Mod Removed Language)the newspapers would. Poor [Admin Removed], stupid move but he's getting more [Admin Removed] than he deserves. DJI drones don't lift off the ground if flying in the zone is forbidden. Partly New York city's fault for not restricting flying.

 

[dronerdave]

DJI drones don't lift off the ground if flying in the zone is forbidden.

Not with my Mavic. There are plenty of places I can fly that are forbidden if I wanted to ignore FAA rules. It's one reason people get themselves in trouble...they think the drone will not fly in all restricted areas.

 

[Robert Prior]

DJI drones don't lift off the ground if flying in the zone is forbidden.

Not true. I've been in plenty of places where I can legally fly but my DJI drone won't take off, and I've found others where I can't legally fly but the drone has no restrictions from DJI.

(Applies to Canada, Iceland, and Greenland from personal experience.)

Part of my pre-flight planning is using Drone Pilot Canada to check both the legal and DJI-imposed restrictions.

 

[sar104]

Overreaction because a flying vehicle crashed into the world trade center.
The topic is sensitive and if they didn't raise hell the newspapers would. Poor sob, stupid move but he's getting more **** than he deserves. DJI drones don't lift off the ground if flying in the zone is forbidden. Partly New York city's fault for not restricting flying.

DJI's Geo system only applies airspace restrictions. It doesn't recognize or apply ground operation restrictions imposed by local government or agencies.

 

[BigAl07]

Overreaction because a flying vehicle crashed into the world trade center.
The topic is sensitive and if they didn't raise (Mod Removed Language) the newspapers would. Poor [Admin Removed], stupid move but he's getting more [Admin Removed] than he deserves. DJI drones don't lift off the ground if flying in the zone is forbidden. Partly New York city's fault for not restricting flying.

Seriously? His irresponsible and criminal actions should warrant the fullest extent of repercussions including fines, jail time, and not allowed to fly any type of UAS again.

Keep in mind the UAS world is much bigger than "just" DJI brand.... think Big Picture here . . .

 

[PeteTheJack]

Seriously? His irresponsible and criminal actions should warrant the fullest extent of repercussions including fines, jail time, and not allowed to fly any type of UAS again.

Keep in mind the UAS world is much bigger than "just" DJI brand.... think Big Picture here . . .

I'm only an observer here, but I did see a YouTube video in which a New Yorker uses an App to check for no fly zones, which erroneously shows that the Texan was not in a no fly area. I think it goes to illustrate why we should all rely on common sense rather than a bit third party software. If it doesn't seem right, it probably isn't.

It seems he cooperated fully with the police and is likely, unless circumstances have changed, to be charged with a misdemeanor.

Report here - Texas Tourist Arrested After Crashing a Drone into the World Trade Center

Video here -

- only the first few minutes are of significance to this thread.