Wetsuits and legality

[Phantomrain.org]

PhantomFandom, I hesitate to take any issue with such an esteemed Mavic Pilot Forum member. I do see one situation in which flying in the rain might be a worthwhile endeavor. That is if there is a lot of lightening in the distance. In such a case, the pilot need only hover over his/her back yard and point the drone toward the lightening. Then take a video in that direction. Individual photos can be extracted if desired. VLOS would not be an issue.​

If anyone had done that, please post what ISO and, if applicable, other settings you used.

I own a wet suit, but have not yet used it. In fact, I cannot use it at this time since I have strobes attached, with velcro, on three sides.​

Getting storm shots can be an adventure and a lot of fun, I recommend you just let the 4K do its magic and let ISO run on auto and start by pulling frames from the video. Once you bring it in to the editor you go frame by frame and grab the award winning pictures.
Its kind of amazing to see what you cannot see.

We captured a Tornado forming and quite a few lighting strikes, but others have astounded us with actual pictures and that takes being seasoned in the storms and changing exposure for every shot.

. Maybe Cody Shoaff will chime in as he has posted quite a few pics.

As far as not being able to use the Wet Suit , send me some pictures im sure I can do some custom parts for you so you take advantage of the Benefits of the Wet Suit if velcro does not work for you.

Phantomrain.org
[email protected]

 

[Deleted member 114292]

The FAA are not really scanning your You Tube Videos,

Yes they are ample proof of that.

 

[Capt KO]

I’ve been using exterior Velcro that sticks to anything. Even on the outside of my case to attach my iPad.

 

[Lets Fly]

I have Called the FAA on the matter , and flying in the Rain and keeping in Visual Line of sight is not an infraction nor flying in heavy winds.

I found this quote interesting about VLOS. I never fly beyond my VLOS using strobes over land, but today I decided to test my own VLOS. I went to the beach this morning and flew straight out over the ocean. It was a clear calm beautiful day with mostly blue sky and some white hazy clouds. As I flew out I never took my eyes off the drone ( I am 70 and wear glasses) and I lost site of the strobes at about 2,100 feet in the bright sky but I continued to see the black dot of the M2Z until 2,600 feet and lost it. Since I was over open ocean at 100 feet AGL I decided to go to a mile out, just something I've been wanting to do for a long time. Not a lot see to until I start looking for sharks, but I now have the confidence to fly along the coast. The attached photo shows where I stopped. If you blow it up a little you can see an ultralight passing in front of me. He was at about 250 feet, so over water I stay at about 100 feet and watch for sailboats with 50 foot masts. Still curious about that FAA quote.

 

[Phantomrain.org]

Be interesting to know what you up/down VLOS # is ?
Where you looking at the controller and than up at the sky,

I clocked mine at 1800 ft if i kept looking at the controller.

It was interesting to note that your Strobes gave out at 2100 ft where the Air 2 Rescue Jackets can be seen
at 3000 ft ,

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly your Air in the Rain and land on water.

 

[Lets Fly]

Be interesting to know what you up/down VLOS # is ?
Where you looking at the controller and than up at the sky,

I clocked mine at 1800 ft if i kept looking at the controller.

It was interesting to note that your Strobes gave out at 2100 ft where the Air 2 Rescue Jackets can be seen
at 3000 ft ,

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly your Air in the Rain and land on water.

I had been flying the Mavic Air 1 for over a year and a half, and I always video my flights. I am well aware of losing site of the drone when looking up and down. I have mentioned this in another thread that it's nearly impossible to video and keep VLOS when trying to focus on a particular subject on the ground. We all have to regain sight of the drone once looking down and up again. I would lose site of MA1 at 1,000 feet and have to find it again. In this situation with the larger M2Z I was videoing as I backed out over the ocean and since there is nothing to look at except open water I keep my eyes on just the drone. The strobe (only one firehouse on front leg) blended in with the bright background at that distance as I concentrated on the black dot. If I would have looked down at all for either the strobe or dot I would have lost them much sooner.( I will try that over water again, It's raining today, no pun intended). Still looking for conformation that the FAA does not consider BVLOS an infraction since VLOS has been a constant rule we all try to abide by, I would imagine they are not interested as long as no incidents occurred.

 

[zeusfl]

I personally archived +3000 ft with a rescue jacket and strobe with VLOS on a clear day. Also, something nobody mention is perfectly legal to use the binoculars for a few seconds only in case of emergencies where you need to make sure for safety purposes. As long as you do not make it a habit you are ok. This applies to the visual observer as well.

 

[spsphotos]

I fly in the rain, with wetsuits. Why, cuz I can. And it’s Fun. ? (avoid hurricanes, from experience)

More importantly, It also keeps debris out of sensitive parts. Beach sand is the worst, contains salt. ?

Exactly. Wetsuits are good not just for rain, but for when close to the water. And good for those unexpected rain showers in some areas. I've been flying and suddenly started to rain (not hard but enough to make me land quickly).

 

[spsphotos]

Its not true, this has already been debunked. The guy presenting the video is already telling you that its sketchy. One thing were not seeing is the infraction letters , This is the telling truth.

For instance if i got a letter from the FAA stating that i was flying Recklessly near a Train . I may change that to something less alarming to get viewers and keep viewers . This is one of those incidents.

It would take me 5 Minutes to find 20 video influencers who have millions of viewers and and can pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines that have broken FAA rules in a bad way and that is just not happening.

One other note: The FAA do not call you, they send you a letter.



Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly in the Rain and Float on Water.

My opinion on the video is that someone ratted him out. I don't think FAA was out LOOKING for his videos. I think that they got a complaint (could have been any ol' Karen) and they had to follow up. I think the FAA has a LOT more on its plate than sitting at a desk all day scouring YouTube. And I agree, he showed "screenshots" of emails (btw, he can't spell) and he keeps mentioning he changes phones a lot. Why? That alone makes me suspicious. I'm sure that the FAA did contact him, but not because he was picked out the blue...

 

[maelstrom]

Also, something nobody mention is perfectly legal to use the binoculars for a few seconds only in case of emergencies where you need to make sure for safety purposes.

Technically, this is illegal in the UK. This is directly from the CAA website:

Within the Visual Line Of Sight (VLOS) of the person flying the aircraft​

This means that the aircraft must be able to be clearly seen by the person flying it at all times when it is airborne. By doing this, the person flying the aircraft is able to monitor its flight path and so manoeuvre it clear of anything that it may collide with. While corrective spectacles can be used to look at the aircraft, the use of binoculars, telescopes, or any other image enhancing devices are not permitted.

 

[zeusfl]

Additionally, here is a reference from Advisory Circular 107-2:

5.7.1 Unaided Vision. VLOS must be accomplished and maintained by unaided vision, except vision that is corrected by the use of eyeglasses (spectacles) or contact lenses. Vision aids, such as binoculars, may be used only momentarily to enhance situational awareness. For example, the remote PIC, person manipulating the controls, or VO may use vision aids to avoid flying over persons or conflicting with other aircraft. Similarly, first person view devices may be used during operations, but do not satisfy the VLOS requirement.

https://www.faa.gov/documentlibrary/media/advisory_circular/ac_107-2.pdf

 

[JMMath]

Couple things to note: That was a lie he started off with hoping to avoid having to confront the real infractions , in other words he panicked.

There was no warning or infraction for flying in the rain or heavy winds.
This is why he never read a single letter that was sent by the FAA.

I have Called the FAA on the matter , and flying in the Rain and keeping in Visual Line of sight is not an infraction nor flying in heavy winds.

Several people have also pointed out that there was not a single video he posted of him flying in the rain , just some dark clouds where he talks about hurricane and tornado , its all lies for entertainment.


Common sense will tell you that FAA does not control the Weather , if it flash rains , they would much rather you took precautions to not have your Drone fall out of sky.

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly your Mavic in the Rain and Float on Water.
Coal

Good read, partner ??

 

[JMMath]

living in Fla, we have to be wary of “pop-up thunderBombs” and when we get surprised........
??PRAY and head home. As fast as possible ???‍?

 

[Ron Caballero CAP]

Getting storm shots can be an adventure and a lot of fun, I recommend you just let the 4K do its magic and let ISO run on auto and start by pulling frames from the video. Once you bring it in to the editor you go frame by frame and grab the award winning pictures.
View attachment 118639 View attachment 118640 View attachment 118641 Its kind of amazing to see what you cannot see.

We captured a Tornado forming and quite a few lighting strikes, but others have astounded us with actual pictures and that takes being seasoned in the storms and changing exposure for every shot.

. Maybe Cody Shoaff will chime in as he has posted quite a few pics.

As far as not being able to use the Wet Suit , send me some pictures im sure I can do some custom parts for you so you take advantage of the Benefits of the Wet Suit if velcro does not work for you.

Phantomrain.org
[email protected]

Getting storm shots can be an adventure and a lot of fun, I recommend you just let the 4K do its magic and let ISO run on auto and start by pulling frames from the video. Once you bring it in to the editor you go frame by frame and grab the award winning pictures.
View attachment 118639 View attachment 118640 View attachment 118641 Its kind of amazing to see what you cannot see.

We captured a Tornado forming and quite a few lighting strikes, but others have astounded us with actual pictures and that takes being seasoned in the storms and changing exposure for every shot.

. Maybe Cody Shoaff will chime in as he has posted quite a few pics.

As far as not being able to use the Wet Suit , send me some pictures im sure I can do some custom parts for you so you take advantage of the Benefits of the Wet Suit if velcro does not work for you.

Phantomrain.org
[email protected]

Mavic Air

 

[Ron Caballero CAP]

Phantomrain.org

Here are the photos you asked for.

 

[Ron Caballero CAP]

Getting storm shots can be an adventure and a lot of fun, I recommend you just let the 4K do its magic and let ISO run on auto and start by pulling frames from the video. Once you bring it in to the editor you go frame by frame and grab the award winning pictures.
View attachment 118639 View attachment 118640 View attachment 118641 Its kind of amazing to see what you cannot see.

We captured a Tornado forming and quite a few lighting strikes, but others have astounded us with actual pictures and that takes being seasoned in the storms and changing exposure for every shot.

. Maybe Cody Shoaff will chime in as he has posted quite a few pics.

As far as not being able to use the Wet Suit , send me some pictures im sure I can do some custom parts for you so you take advantage of the Benefits of the Wet Suit if velcro does not work for you.

Phantomrain.org
[email protected]

See my photos in a separate message to Phantomrain.

 

[BigAl07]

yes...one regular mail and one certified, and they never email. In fact you have a he** of a time getting them on the telephone.

Correction they CAN and DO call you on the phone. I got the "phone call" in 2015 and the follow up Certified Mail.

I can tell you FIRST HAND the FAA can indeed merely make an initial phone call.

 

[BigAl07]

I personally archived +3000 ft with a rescue jacket and strobe with VLOS on a clear day. Also, something nobody mention is perfectly legal to use the binoculars for a few seconds only in case of emergencies where you need to make sure for safety purposes. As long as you do not make it a habit you are ok. This applies to the visual observer as well.

Not if you're flying under Part 107. The RPIC must be ABLE To see the aircraft unaided (other than eye glasses or contacts):

107.31 Visual line of sight aircraft operation.​

§ 107.31 Visual line of sight aircraft operation.
(a) With vision that is unaided by any device other than corrective lenses, the remote pilot in command, the visual observer (if one is used), and the person manipulating the flight control of the small unmanned aircraft system must be able to see the unmanned aircraft throughout the entire flight in order to:

 

[Steel63]

Couple things to note: That was a lie he started off with hoping to avoid having to confront the real infractions , in other words he panicked.

There was no warning or infraction for flying in the rain or heavy winds.
This is why he never read a single letter that was sent by the FAA.

I have Called the FAA on the matter , and flying in the Rain and keeping in Visual Line of sight is not an infraction nor flying in heavy winds.

Several people have also pointed out that there was not a single video he posted of him flying in the rain , just some dark clouds where he talks about hurricane and tornado , its all lies for entertainment.


Common sense will tell you that FAA does not control the Weather , if it flash rains , they would much rather you took precautions to not have your Drone fall out of sky.

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly your Mavic in the Rain and Float on Water.
Coal

Thanks for clarifying flying in the rain I do fly in the rain to capture lightning on video I love it also thanks for the amazing wetsuit couldn't fly without it ??

 

[Phantomrain.org]

Here are the photos you asked for.

Ok, i was thinking you had the lights on the legs , Thanks for the Pictures.
Have you considered the Adapter Plates for the lights rather than the Velcro ?
Phantomrain.org
Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly your Mavic in the Rain.