What a fine little drone...

[edfrombama]

A very good morning to all-
I took the new Mini 2 out for a chilly morning flight. The wind was flat calm- so much different from the past week. I flew the Mini 2 about a mile down the highway from my flight field and what a pleasure to fly this little birds is. I do so enjoy the clear transmissions and the little flight track map on the lower left of the display. Makes it so easy to control the drone.
After a mile and a half or so, I began to get transmission weak signals on the controller, so I turned around and came back. I think if I'd boosted the drone up in altitude a little bit, I could have flown on quite a bit farther- but I was starting to get cold.
I flew the drone back past me and flew on a half mile or so toward town.
Then I brought the bird back- I really do like the speed at which the Mini 2 descends- much quicker than my other drones, yet still under complete control. then I landed it, packed it up and came home to warm up.
Now the drone is sitting on the recharge shelf and is blinky-breathing at me as I recharge the battery. My ordered recharge hub is supposed to come in today- that will be nice.

You all be safe and keep well- Ed

 

[photo2be]

Great flight in Alabama but you "ruin" other dronepilots reputation by NOT flying VLOS! Not that clever!
In longer term that will end up in more restrictive regulations for all of us!

 

[edfrombama]

Good afternoon to all-
photo2be-
Perhaps there is something in what you say. But I think in the future I will just report that I have gone flying and I won't be specific in how far I fly...
Where I live, there are few if any other droners, and most people here never notice where and when I'm flying since it is largely undeveloped, very rural areas.

And I have never been accused of being clever- it's too late for me to start trying to be clever.

But I do love how my Mini 2 flies and responds to command.

good day to all- Ed

 

[Paint Rock Drones]

Good afternoon to all-
photo2be-
Perhaps there is something in what you say. But I think in the future I will just report that I have gone flying and I won't be specific in how far I fly...
Where I live, there are few if any other droners, and most people here never notice where and when I'm flying since it is largely undeveloped, very rural areas.

And I have never been accused of being clever- it's too late for me to start trying to be clever.

But I do love how my Mini 2 flies and responds to command.

good day to all- Ed

Hi Ed,

Welcome, and glad to hear you are enjoying your Mini 2.

Do you know about TRUST? The FAA requires at least that level of certification for all drone pilots in the US, regardless of how rural you are. What you will find is that the visual line of sight (VLOS) rules are primarily designed to protect crewed aircraft, not other drones.

 

[photo2be]

Good afternoon to all-
photo2be-
Perhaps there is something in what you say. But I think in the future I will just report that I have gone flying and I won't be specific in how far I fly...
Where I live, there are few if any other droners, and most people here never notice where and when I'm flying since it is largely undeveloped, very rural areas.

And I have never been accused of being clever- it's too late for me to start trying to be clever.

But I do love how my Mini 2 flies and responds to command.

good day to all- Ed

Ok, you don't tell how far away you fly ..but FAA will easily fint out from YOUR own log where you smashed into an airplane! And prepare for more ridgid regulations for ALL of us!

 

[edfrombama]

Good afternoon to all-
Well, I suppose that if the FAA wants to come for me, they won't have so very much trouble finding me. I follow rules and obey restrictions, but when there is really no reason for me to be terribly concerned with such things, then I'm not terribly concerned. And I don't fly around any other sort of craft in the sky. I really am not terribly concerned about my drone flying having any sort of deleterious effect on anyone else. The few people who have come upon me flying were very interested in what I was doing and not at all antagonistic about my little bird up in the sky.

I'm afraid I don't have the right sort of mindset for a certain level of drone flying. I mind my own business and don't put myself in other folks' way.

If that isn't good enough, well, I may just have to do something else with my time.

you all be safe and keep well- Ed

 

[360 Guy]

So glad you had a great flight.
That bird you have is truly amazing.
Have a good time and go fly. o7


This is a quote taken from another thread..............
"flying BVLOS is the only way to document the subject of the study".

 

[Chaosrider]

Good afternoon to all-
Well, I suppose that if the FAA wants to come for me, they won't have so very much trouble finding me. I follow rules and obey restrictions, but when there is really no reason for me to be terribly concerned with such things, then I'm not terribly concerned. And I don't fly around any other sort of craft in the sky. I really am not terribly concerned about my drone flying having any sort of deleterious effect on anyone else. The few people who have come upon me flying were very interested in what I was doing and not at all antagonistic about my little bird up in the sky.

I'm afraid I don't have the right sort of mindset for a certain level of drone flying. I mind my own business and don't put myself in other folks' way.

If that isn't good enough, well, I may just have to do something else with my time.

you all be safe and keep well- Ed

I think your approach is just fine! Don't let the bright-liners get you down.

I fly the Mini-2 also, and it's definitely a delightful and capable little machine. I haven't been able to fly for a while due to weather and work, but today looks like a real possibility.

Drone on!



TCS

 

[Deleted member 137163]

Hi Ed,

Welcome, and glad to hear you are enjoying your Mini 2.

Do you know about TRUST? The FAA requires at least that level of certification for all drone pilots in the US, regardless of how rural you are. What you will find is that the visual line of sight (VLOS) rules are primarily designed to protect crewed aircraft, not other drones.

Ed, photo2B gave you a firm but appropriate reply. Paint Rock Drones gave you wonderful polite information for your education. Paint Rock Drones should be commended for keeping polite in the face of an apparent "I do not give a darn attitude," Consider the TRUST training that is required and could have some info that you may enjoy. Nobody wants to **** you and accuse you of anything. They are sensitive to the fact that new regulations come from the minority that disobey current rules. Last comments from me on this thread.

 

[edfrombama]

Good morning to all-
Well, according to the folks at Ebay my ordered charging hub for the batteries of my Mini 2 will arrive today. I hope so- that will be much more convenient for keeping batteries up.

And I will probably go flying this afternoon if it doesn't rain. And I truly do not "give a darn" who likes it or not. I don't bother others and I hope for the same from them. I will look into the TRUST training- I've never heard a word about such a thing before- and if it seems helpful, I will do it. If not- then I'll just go flying.

And I expect this will be my last comments on this topic.

good day to all- Ed

 

[PascalG]

As a licensed pilot, I would argue than flying an aircraft below 500’ is far more irresponsible than using a drone beyond VLOS at 100 to 200’ altitude. But what do I know.

 

[ashyt16]

All this argument about BVLOS. I bet there's hardly a drone pilot that hasn't when trying to get some good footage. Otherwise drone flying would become pretty boring pretty quickly.
It's not totally irresponsible to do it now and then. Just because someone does it, it doesn't mean they are a bad pilot.
Its when, where and how that causes the issue .
There are plenty of places it can be done safely that wouldn't make a jot of difference if it went out of sight especially with a small drone like the mini.

There are worse things people do than going BVLOS and they are the ones that give drone flying a bad rep.

If you are 300 to 400 ft in the air over acres of fields or other land or even water, who is it going to affect if no one is around?

Most people would get more annoyed with a drone buzzing about near their home than some field miles away.

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

All this argument about BVLOS. I bet there's hardly a drone pilot that hasn't when trying to get some good footage. Otherwise drone flying would become pretty boring pretty quickly.
It's not totally irresponsible to do it now and then. Just because someone does it, it doesn't mean they are a bad pilot.
Its when, where and how that causes the issue .
There are plenty of places it can be done safely that wouldn't make a jot of difference if it went out of sight especially with a small drone like the mini.

There are worse things people do than going BVLOS and they are the ones that give drone flying a bad rep.

If you are 300 to 400 ft in the air over acres of fields or other land or even water, who is it going to affect if no one is around?

Most people would get more annoyed with a drone buzzing about near their home than some field miles away.

I agree to a point re BVLOS, many do it, and it doesn't take much distance sometimes.
I've flown in very remote places, generally keeping reasonably close, but have gone over desert sand dunes a few times following vehicles cresting in our group, where I was over the dune a little ways.

Once filmed an iron ore freight train where I got 1000m from my take off point.
That just happened flying along it, the train was several km long !
To put that in perspective, it was very remote, not a soul around, and no chance of a light aircraft being within many hundreds of km.

At a drone show once I asked a CASA representative about these, especially the train flight.
He said they weren't concerned about that sort of flight at all.

I personally think though, when such rules are needed, that they are applied in a blanket form, the keep the message consistent and enforceable.
Like traffic speed limits on our roads, police can (and usually do) give a little leeway in the right conditions, while speed cameras fixed or mobile do not . . .

But they need a limit, and I guess this is decided to the 'lowest common denominator'.

Eg. some people can't drive a motor vehicle to (literally) save their lives, no matter what speed limit is set.
Likewise, some can't get a handle on their drones' telemetry, where their drone is, direction it's moving, what it's status is with wind, etc . . . so they need to set rules to cater to these people and they don't know whose skills are better so we all get lumped with a generally lower form of limitation.

 

[Chrislaf]

What is concerning is the attitude of the OP. He thinks because he is not bothering anyone around him on the ground when he flies, everything is just fine. He doesn’t seem worried about whether there could be any aircraft in the area where he flies BVLOS.

I often fly in remote locations (from hiking trails or snowmobile trails) far away from any airport and have been surprised by low flying planes or helicopters flying just above the trees. I even once saw an ultralight- imagine what kind of damage even a Mini could do.

I don’t care if my next drone can fly 12km, to me it’s not worth the risk taking chances and flying BVLOS. I definitely wouldn’t want to be a pilot of a helicopter or plane and have to worry about hitting a drone.

Chris

 

[RogerDH]

...

But they need a limit, and I guess this is decided to the 'lowest common denominator'.

Eg. some people can't drive a motor vehicle to (literally) save their lives, no matter what speed limit is set.
Likewise, some can't get a handle on their drones' telemetry, where their drone is, direction it's moving, what it's status is with wind, etc . . . so they need to set rules to cater to these people and they don't know whose skills are better so we all get lumped with a generally lower form of limitation.

No, the limitation derives directly from what the FAA says is the drone pilot's primary responsibility, which is to see and avoid other aircraft. Unless your skills include psychic "remote viewing," you can't do that using just the camera view.

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

No, the limitation derives directly from what the FAA says is the drone pilot's primary responsibility, which is to see and avoid other aircraft. Unless your skills include psychic "remote viewing," you can't do that using just the camera view.

You misinterpret my comment about skills levels there, it probably wasn't the perfect analogy.

I fully understand the need to know your drones orientation etc to other aircraft that share the sky.
It should be kept close enough to enable emergency action if you become aware of another aircraft in the vicinity.

If you want to get technical about it, perhaps drones should only have a controller, with no viewing device, that'd be fun . . . well, it would for buzzing about close by, not much use for photography or video.

A pilots primary view when flying to take photos or video is via the device screen, anyone that says otherwise must have psychic vision of what their camera sees . . . of course, when flying your drone and composing photos or recording video, you should be able to look up and see your drone promptly when you look up for it.
Should you hear an aircraft or helicopter engine becoming audible, then you can take the right action to move it as needed, bring it lower or land if necessary.

Strobes are great to find your drone fast when looking for it nearby.

I don’t care if my next drone can fly 12km, to me it’s not worth the risk taking chances and flying BVLOS. I definitely wouldn’t want to be a pilot of a helicopter or plane and have to worry about hitting a drone.

Those sort of flights here, on YouTube etc, it's no wonder they get the feedback they do from most drone pilots.
You just KNOW they have to stay very high in the air to keep signal even half that sort of distance, very easy to get into trouble and perhaps one day being responsible for some incident.

 

[ashyt16]

Maybe aircraft (not drones) shouldn't be flying so low in the first place, then there would be no worry about interaction?

Why is a big aircraft flying so low in the first place unless they are landing? In which case you wouldn't be anywhere near anyway as you're not able to fly within miles of an airport and you'd be a fool to do so.

 

[Chrislaf]

Maybe aircraft (not drones) shouldn't be flying so low in the first place, then there would be no worry about interaction?

Why is a big aircraft flying so low in the first place unless they are landing? In which case you wouldn't be anywhere near anyway as you're not able to fly within miles of an airport and you'd be a fool to do so.

Big aircraft do have reasons to fly low that we as drone pilots may not be aware of. Once in an area I frequently fly at (remote location) a provincial police officer noticed I was flying my drone and stopped and talked to me. He indicated to me that there were low flying helicopters doing training just above the trees in the areas from time to time. I told him that I always fly within VLOS and asked if he wanted to see my pilots license and drone. He was fine with just knowing that I was keeping my drone in VLOS. He was just basically checking that I was aware of the rules and following them.

Chris

 

[edfrombama]

Good morning to all-
I am the OP for this discussion, and I have learned a lot from reading the responses.
First, there are more limitations on this fun activity than I was aware of. Unfortunate, but I am learning.
Second, there are differences of opinion about what constitutes safe flying and what does not.
Finally, I have learned that there are certain people who love to correct others and don't mind being somewhat snarky about it. So be it.

I went out flying this morning- cool, clear, light wind. My little drone flew so well and I am growing more pleased every time I fly at the connection quality and the quick response of the drone to my commands. I truly do appreciate the mapping functions of the DJI controller- makes it so easy to fly the drone no matter how far it is from me.

And no, I won't tell you how far I flew. but it was fun.

good day to all- Ed

 

[MS Coast]

Ok. A disclaimer first. I'm not attacking anyone, making fun of anyone, or attempting to modify the behavior of anyone. OK? Also, this is intended to be somewhat humorous, in a Will Rogers sort of way.

I've read quite a few versions of this discussion on this forum and elsewhere and I keep wondering about why drone regulations get people's hackles up so badly. I wonder what the discussion would sound like if we substituted another activity for flying drones.

---

And I will probably go driving my car this afternoon if it doesn't rain. And I truly do not "give a darn" who likes it or not. I don't bother others and I hope for the same from them. I will look into driver training and a driver's license - I've never heard a word about such a thing before- and if it seems helpful, I will do it. If not- then I'll just go drive my car.