What do you think you are doing? This is a No-Drone Zone…

[MAvic_South_Oz]

To all the stealth aficionados hiding in dark places while flying ... here's what you may look like on the street... lol.

View attachment 136796

Even better, the proven drone pilots ghillie suit, $99.99 at Walmart . . .

 

[DARKSeifer]

I usually fly long range and take off from private property, only got approached twice by random people in more than 270 hours of flight time. Start the engines, check it's flying ok, rush to 120m altitude and move at least 300m away ASAP, then fly normally from there on. 1-3Km is my usual range.

As for the drone I have all the paperwork done just in case police appears.

Of course, when flying on location in VLOS range you'll always draw a ton of attention no matter what, specially if you are in silent areas away from traffic noise, so be prepared to waste time explaining to random people that you don't work for Al Qaeda.

 

[Mazdaman323lx]

I normally bring Caesar with me on my drone outings. Never had anyone approach me for some reason.

 

[slozukimc]

To all of you hiding you are not helping. People see you and because you are hiding you are shady and must be doing something illegal. They say” Is that person flying a drone or doing drugs? Either way as a good citizen I must interfere with their business.”

 

[cgmaxed]

I guess it depends on where you are. Where I am now in Kentucky, a Chrysler plant or distillery or any other local business with some influence in town will call the police, lie about what you're doing and enjoy the complete support of the officers who respond.

Invariably, I know the law better than the responding officers and they take that as a personal affront. They take the "Well, I'll find SOMETHING to charge you with" attitude to intimidate and try to get you to leave. It doesn't matter that the company lied or that the officers are wrong, it only matters that Jim Beam is an important part of the local community. So far, when I ask for a supervisor, they've responded and have had a grasp of the law. I'm given an apology followed by the standard nonsense directives every cop feels they have to say to save face - "I don't mind you filming (like I'm supposed to care whether or not you mind). You can fly here, but you can't fly over the jail (which is 25 miles away). And you can't fly over the airport (I also can't land on the White House, want to mention that one?)...etc"

I've been approached by police in cities in KY and all around the Los Angeles area and not a single one has known the law or took any measures to deescalate or inform the business that I'm allowed to fly in the area. They just acted like tyrants in blue costumes.

I used to ask the business permission, even though it isn't needed, as a courtesy. Now, I'm in stealth mode. I can get the shot and leave before people notice what's happening.

Yup, be discrete, get the shot and go. Being confronted is often not worth the hassle. Especially, if a cop has a chip on their shoulder.

 

[MAVE (Little bird)]

Even better, the proven drone pilots ghillie suit, $99.99 at Walmart . . .

View attachment 136797

I about busted a gut laughing so hard. But I like it.

 

[cgmaxed]

To all of you hiding you are not helping. People see you and because you are hiding you are shady and must be doing something illegal. They say” Is that person flying a drone or doing drugs? Either way as a good citizen I must interfere with their business.”

They think the same way, if your standing in plain site or not. In fact, I believe the pilot is perceived as less of a concern, if their is no drone hovering nearby them. But when someone sees the drone and thus knows your the one controlling it, game over.

When your alone with your remote and they can't see or hear a drone, they don't know what your doing and will likely ignore you. They may think your just playing a video game or something. But if they see you and see the drone, their imaginations go wild. And it's usually not in a positive direction.

It's not like we "hide", the way you think. If I fly on the beach, I might just stand on the sidewalk near the beach or the sidewalk across the street from the beach, but not on the beach standing their with my remote for all to see. Other times, I just pick a parking lot near the building, park, nature park, beach or other scenery I want to shoot, but not in the area itself. We don't hide, we just move to a less conspicuous place. A place where the drone will be seen, but not where we will readily be seen flying it. If someone sees us, they likely won't have a clue what where doing, because they probably won't be able to see or hear the drone flying in the VLOS radius where flying in. The only time we are seen with the drone is when it's landing near us or taking off. The rest of the time we appear unrelated to the drone and thus, aren't targeted as the "nefarious freaks" the news cycle and society has caused most of the public to perceive us to be.

 

[slozukimc]

They think the same way, if your standing in plain site or not. In fact, I believe the pilot is perceived as less of a concern, if their is no drone hovering nearby them. But when someone sees the drone and thus knows your the one controlling it, game over.

When your alone with your remote and they can't see or hear a drone, they don't know what your doing and will likely ignore you. They may think your just playing a video game or something. But if they see you and see the drone, their imaginations go wild. And it's usually not in a positive direction.

It's not like we "hide", the way you think. If I fly on the beach, I might just stand on the sidewalk near the beach or the sidewalk across the street from the beach, but not on the beach standing their with my remote for all to see. Other times, I just pick a parking lot near the building, park, nature park, beach or other scenery I want to shoot, but not in the area itself. We don't hide, we just move to a less conspicuous place. A place where the drone will be seen, but not where we will readily be seen flying it. If someone sees us, they likely won't have a clue what where doing, because they probably won't be able to see or hear the drone flying in the VLOS radius where flying in. The only time we are seen with the drone is when it's landing near us or taking off. The rest of the time we appear unrelated to the drone and thus, aren't targeted as the "nefarious freaks" the news cycle and society has caused most of the public to perceive us to be.

I see what you mean. I read hide and took it a bit too literally.

 

[dronerdave]

To all of you hiding you are not helping. People see you and because you are hiding you are shady and must be doing something illegal. They say” Is that person flying a drone or doing drugs? Either way as a good citizen I must interfere with their business.”

I take to the next step and stand next to my white Ford Van.

 

[slozukimc]

I take to the next step and stand next to my white Ford Van.

That only works if you spread candy on the ground so they think they know what you are up to and ignore the drone.

 

[McGanksta]

I take to the next step and stand next to my white Ford Van.

Down by the river?

 

[LenSavage]

I have only been 'arms crossed, grumpy' approached once in over 3 years of flying and I responded 'I was contracted by the estate owner to shoot survey photos of the property boundaries'. He just walked away. The photo (click to enlarge) is me and notice on the back; 'PLEASE DO NOT DISTURB'. Most often, when I am flying, I am on or near a film set location or construction site and I am also wearing a hard hat. I have also responded to the curious; "After I land, I will be glad to chat with you".

 

[snowghost]

Stealth if possible for me as well, but there a few locations where it wasn't possible. I have a safety vest that has "FAA Licensed Commercial Drone Pilot Do Not Disturb" on the back. My flying buddy has one that has his advertising on it. Either way they have served us well, and we've had many good conversations with the curious. My certificate is on a lanyard along with the registration, and have a printout of the airspace parameters.

I was flying on a trailhead and a couple women stopped to chat, my buddy kept them occupied while I flew. One of them looked up as a business jet passed by at around 5000' and she said "wow, is that you flying that"? LOL

 

[snowghost]

I have only been 'arms crossed, grumpy' approached once in over 3 years of flying and I responded 'I was contracted by the estate owner to shoot survey photos of the property boundaries'. He just walked away. The photo (click to enlarge) is me and notice on the back; 'PLEASE DO NOT DISTURB'. Most often, when I am flying, I am on or near a film set location or construction site and I am also wearing a hard hat. I have also responded to the curious; "After I land, I will be glad to chat with you".

Nice vest. Great minds.... LOL

 

[LenSavage]

Stealth if possible for me as well, but there a few locations where it wasn't possible. I have a safety vest that has "FAA Licensed Commercial Drone Pilot Do Not Disturb" on the back. My flying buddy has one that has his advertising on it. Either way they have served us well, and we've had many good conversations with the curious. My certificate is on a lanyard along with the registration, and have a printout of the airspace parameters.

I was flying on a trailhead and a couple women stopped to chat, my buddy kept them occupied while I flew. One of them looked up as a business jet passed by at around 5000' and she said "wow, is that you flying that"? LOL

My vest (previous post & photo) has the FAA words on one side and my Pegasus Aerial Images logo on the other so yeah, advertisement.

 

[HighlandsVideo]

This is exactly why I always fly stealth, hidden adequately to mitigate being seen or questioned. In 6yrs of flying DJI craft I've never had anyone hassle me in over 2000mi and 200hrs of flight time (knock on wood). Exposing yourself when flying recreationally invites confrontations, regardless if you're flying legal or not.

I too have been tempted to hide from view when flying to avoid being challenged and while I have not yet been challenged by LEO or anyone else, the fear of being interrupted has tarnished many a flight for me.

Still I don't hide because I am aware of how, for many people, seeing a drone and not being able to determine who/where it's coming from is disquieting and contributes to the negative attitudes about us and our hobby (i.e. "Those sneaky droners").

I always follow the advice above and plan to be both prepared and polite but I don't hide away. We need for the general public to get enough experience with us to stop being suspicious of us. IMHO.

 

[HighlandsVideo]

This is exactly why I always fly stealth, hidden adequately to mitigate being seen or questioned. In 6yrs of flying DJI craft I've never had anyone hassle me in over 2000mi and 200hrs of flight time (knock on wood). Exposing yourself when flying recreationally invites confrontations, regardless if you're flying legal or not.

I too have been tempted to stay out of sight when flying because, while I haven't been yet, the fear of being accosted/challenged while my drone is in the air has tarnished the fun of many a flight for me.

Still I choose not to hide away in public places because I am aware of how disquieting it is for many people to see a drone and not be able to determine where/who it is coming from. That I believe contributes to the negative attitudes many still harbor about us. (i.e. "Those sneaky droners are always up to no good.")

The sooner the general public has had a lot of experiences with us, the sooner we will be seen the way we usually are...non threatening. IMHO

 

[lissforester]

To all the stealth aficionados hiding in dark places while flying ... here's what you may look like on the street... lol.

View attachment 136796

Ha ha ha! Lovin the cartoon.
Good point. Beware of people hiding in the shadows trying their hardest not to be seen they are usually up to no good. Quick call the cops, I bet he is some sort of terrorist.
Bit extreme I know.
But, people are suspicious.
If I was not a dronie and saw someone hiding in the shadows with some sort of electrical transmitter with antennae on I might be concerned.

 

[Bryan L]

I've not had many experiences like that. ... I smiled, gave him my business card, and said "If that's true, call the cops."

I will be keeping that response at the ready! Good one!

 

[cgmaxed]

Ha ha ha! Lovin the cartoon.
Good point. Beware of people hiding in the shadows trying their hardest not to be seen they are usually up to no good. Quick call the cops, I bet he is some sort of terrorist.
Bit extreme I know.
But, people are suspicious.
If I was not a dronie and saw someone hiding in the shadows with some sort of electrical transmitter with antennae on I might be concerned.

Just get a private investigator license