U.S. Secret Service Visit

[BigAl07]

Go figure, when he is at his Rehoboth beach house, the no-fly radius is minuscule at 10 miles. When he is at his Greenville residence, it is a hard no-fly zone with a 20-mile radius...

His unannounced vacations/trips have cost me jobs!!

That's how the cookie crumbles. We all have to learn to live and work within the Regulation Framework and do what's right even when it hurts a little.

 

[HoozierDroneDaddy]

They must have had aeroscope set up in operation, probably 24/7 while that TFR was / is in place.
That DJI system allows for drone detection, drone location (live) and operator location to show up on their screen map.
Great they read the situation in the ground correctly (no real threat), and just requested your son to land and not fly again during the period (I guess).

In addition to Aeroscope, they have other programs and with extended ranges. If you have the authorization and money to get them.

 

[Deleted member 137163]

You got lucky to say the least. Very well done all except not checking the AIRSPACE!!

See the screen shot below to see just HOW into the TFR you was flying . . . View attachment 150426

Here's a link that might be helpful going forward for you and your son:

https://www.faa.gov/uas/getting_started/temporary_flight_restrictions

THANK YOU for sharing your story and congrats on a good outcome. It's good to hear Drone Stories ending on a positive note

As a manned aircraft pilot checking NOTAMS and TFRs are almost as important as checking weather ha ha!! Glad there were positive attitudes and professionalism on both sides.

 

[Chaosrider]

That is precisely the way it ended Mavic South. They assessed the situation pretty quickly and accurately. When my son told them I was retired LE - they both just chuckled.

I would have thought the DJI app would have given some warning or even not allowed take off. But like I said earlier - lesson learned.

I had that same thought when I read your story, about DJI Fly not being patched in to the TFR.

I love your Einstein quote, I use that one all the time!

 

[WWF]

My 16-year-old was the PIC this morning at Rehobeth Beach, Delaware. He had the Mini2 up about 10 minutes and was about 3/4 of a mile out to sea when a uniformed agent accompanied by local PD arrived at our launch site. Both were extremely cordial.

They asked if we knew about the temporary flight restrictions and when we told him we did not, they advised POTUS was in town and his summer beach house was less than a mile north of us on the beach.

I was amazed (and reassured) that they would be able to detect the aircraft but even more amazed at how quickly they were able to determine and respond to the launch site as well.

I hope all law-enforcement encounters go this smoothly. Lesson learned: Check the B4UFLY app before launch.

I think it's impressive that someone can just throw a switch at air traffic control and your drone won't even take off. Super frustrating but i get it. This happened to me twice in Miami. One morning Obama was flying in so no dice. Then a couple of years later Trump flying in and hosed me again. I've learned to check on VIPs travel plans.

 

[orionshooter]

According to the map and confirmed by the secret service, the radius extended to forty (40)
miles in all directions not 10.

 

[orionshooter]

I don't believe that you had a DJI drone at the time of launch because, you would have been grounded as I was that weekend.
My abode is not far from that beach.
You lucked out that time

I can assure you it was a DJI drone - a mini2 in fact. I don’t own anything but DJI drones. As others have said, don’t trust DJI to do your due diligence for you.

 

[bmcelya]

If I might make a suggestion to those who are not Part 107 holders...
Regardless of your goals as a drone pilot, may I suggest you study for the Part 107 even if you have no intention of taking the test and being Part 107 certified? You don't have to pay for a "course" if you don't care to. But download the FAA part 107 study guide. Take some of the free pre-tests which will show you what you already know and what you don't yet know.

Flying is lots of fun, but as the OP discovered this is not a game and a screw up of any type can be serious. And who knows... Once you get going with the study you might just decide to take the test and become a Part 107 pilot for the extra privileges (i.e. flying higher than 400' AGL near tall structures).

I think this the best advice. As for the incident above, we live right on the edge of an airport final approach. Sometimes B4Ufly reports an issue and sometimes not, so I consult several programs before flying elsewhere.

I currently hold a provisional 107. When the FAA card comes in I plan to scan both sides, print a copy, and laminate that as my “field“ license, and keep the original in the safe at home. I believe in 107. The whole process was both fun and interesting. It took me about three months from study to test result. Yeah I’m slow, but methodical. The day may come when all pilots will need 107 to fly. I’m ready.

 

[wardtom084]

Always living in the sticks of western N.C., if you had to do anything, you just about had to leave the county. Nothing out here and no need to check a fly zone. We just got our 3rd street light.

 

[CKWUSA]

Good story about the experience with SS and remembering to check B4UFLY. Further comments and opinions withheld.

Understandably difficult to withhold.

 

[JimSteadman]

My 16-year-old was the PIC this morning at Rehobeth Beach, Delaware. He had the Mini2 up about 10 minutes and was about 3/4 of a mile out to sea when a uniformed agent accompanied by local PD arrived at our launch site. Both were extremely cordial.

They asked if we knew about the temporary flight restrictions and when we told him we did not, they advised POTUS was in town and his summer beach house was less than a mile north of us on the beach.

I was amazed (and reassured) that they would be able to detect the aircraft but even more amazed at how quickly they were able to determine and respond to the launch site as well.

I hope all law-enforcement encounters go this smoothly. Lesson learned: Check the B4UFLY app before launch.

We live on the same beach used by our former Governor. This was long before there were drones, but there was never any doubt that when the Governor was in town you had to mind your p's and q's. The low-flying helicopters along the beach were the first clue. I shudder to think what would happen these days.

 

[vindibona1]

Understandably difficult to withhold.

Yeah... It could go 20 different ways .

 

[MS Coast]

Always living in the sticks of western N.C., if you had to do anything, you just about had to leave the county. Nothing out here and no need to check a fly zone. We just got our 3rd street light.

Sounds just like the kind of place where the military likes to conduct low-level training flights.

A friend who built a cabin a ridge in the area where Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee come together was surprised to see the occasional bomber pass by in the valley well below the level of his front porch. Years ago in southeastern Kentucky, I was at about 4500 feet MSL in a Cherokee over nothing but woods at 3500 - 4000' MSL and a B-52 with camo paint on top passed below us. Waaay below us.

 

[mobilehomer]

Exactly the way this kind of encounter should go! Common sense prevailed.

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

Always living in the sticks of western N.C., if you had to do anything, you just about had to leave the county. Nothing out here and no need to check a fly zone. We just got our 3rd street light.

Next thing you know, you'll have a traffic light, then the small town feel will be lost.

 

[BigAl07]

Always living in the sticks of western N.C., if you had to do anything, you just about had to leave the county. Nothing out here and no need to check a fly zone. We just got our 3rd street light.

I fly over your way every couple of weeks and yes, that is absolutely "in the sticks" LOL!

 

[mikegrad]

thats great that the SS were so cool about it. I like to hear the positive stories!

 

[KennethH]

Sometimes I have the feeling the President spends half his time there. I'm surprised it isn't a permanent NFZ.

 

[Ridgeback65]

My 16-year-old was the PIC this morning at Rehobeth Beach, Delaware. He had the Mini2 up about 10 minutes and was about 3/4 of a mile out to sea when a uniformed agent accompanied by local PD arrived at our launch site. Both were extremely cordial.

They asked if we knew about the temporary flight restrictions and when we told him we did not, they advised POTUS was in town and his summer beach house was less than a mile north of us on the beach.

I was amazed (and reassured) that they would be able to detect the aircraft but even more amazed at how quickly they were able to determine and respond to the launch site as well.

I hope all law-enforcement encounters go this smoothly. Lesson learned: Check the B4UFLY app before launch.

Glad you had a good experience with secret service. I had the opportunity to work with them for about a week a few years ago (totally unrelated to drones) and I found them to be extremely professional and cool to work with.

 

[erkme73]

... His unannounced vacations/trips have cost me jobs!!

HE has cost everyone more than that, but I digress. I'm glad to hear that these SS guys were not power-tripping or out to make an example. Refreshing, indeed.