Where do you fly?

[MsDrone]

I went out to our local club’s flying field after work and was disappointed not to be able to fly, as there was a tractor mowing in the field. I need to figure out where else I can fly. Where do people fly? I have access to a family camp from Sept to April so will be able to go there in a few weeks (it’s too busy in the summer, with both people and pets) . It’s a 160 acre non-working old farm, with a river winding through it, and various old buildings etc, so that will be a great place to go. For now though I’m feeling stuck. As a new drone enthusiast I’m not sure where I can go. I know I can’t take off or land on private property (without permission). I’m thinking that I can fly on municipal property as long as there are no specific ordinances prohibiting drones, and on provincial or crown land, excluding national parks. And then I have to keep the basic rules in mind, like not within 100’ of people (so it would need to be a big park, and likely a quiet time of day), and not over moving vehicles. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

(I’m in Thunder Bay, in northwestern Ontario.)

 

[Rattydude77]

I went out to our local club’s flying field after work and was disappointed not to be able to fly, as there was a tractor mowing in the field. I need to figure out where else I can fly. Where do people fly? I have access to a family camp from Sept to April so will be able to go there in a few weeks (it’s too busy in the summer, with both people and pets) . It’s a 160 acre non-working old farm, with a river winding through it, and various old buildings etc, so that will be a great place to go. For now though I’m feeling stuck. As a new drone enthusiast I’m not sure where I can go. I know I can’t take off or land on private property (without permission). I’m thinking that I can fly on municipal property as long as there are no specific ordinances prohibiting drones, and on provincial or crown land, excluding national parks. And then I have to keep the basic rules in mind, like not within 100’ of people (so it would need to be a big park, and likely a quiet time of day), and not over moving vehicles. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

(I’m in Thunder Bay, in northwestern Ontario.)

My wife and I go to parks and fly if theres not alot of people there or we travel to state land same thing if theres not alot of people there

 

[Skyfall-0D2]

I feel for you guys in built up areas with restrictions. Fortunately being on the west coast of Scotland, as long as we avoid the nuclear submarines (apparently you go to a military jail for a long time), we really have very few restrictions at all.
Hope you can find some new locations soon MsDrone.

 

[THE CYBORG]

I am like Skyfall-0D2 and feel for you guys.
I live in the English lake district and have very few restrictions.
Only problem is I am disabled so can have problems getting to some of the good places.

 

[Olav van Gerven]

I fly mostly in Sweden, sometimes in Germany or the Netherlands. But what wonders me, why did the tractor hinder you from flying?

 

[MsDrone]

why did the tractor hinder you from flying?

I was out flying a week ago and a tractor was mowing in the fields. Next time I went there was a sign up ‘No flying when there’s farm equipment out, for safety’. I talked to the Club President and he said even if it’s way out in the field if you’re flying and the tractor goes out of sight you might end up within 100’ of the person. This time the tractor was even further out, it’s about 1,200 ft to the field behind the 2nd tree line and that’s where it was. I waited half an hour and then left. I could have easily stayed far more than 100’ away, but I don’t want to impact my flying privileges, and I definitely don’t want to impact flying privileges for anyone else in the Club. I’m guessing we rent the field and it’s a rule of the field owner.

 

[Skyfall-0D2]

If there’s club rules in place, then yea, I’m guessing they are there for a reason and these farmers don’t want 30 drones above them every time they are out, nor the risk of a $500K piece of equipment going down because a drone got chewed in it.
However, If there’s something specific you would like to film, is it worth asking them “would you mind as a one off, you give me a 20 min slot to do xyz. These are my qualifications and here’s my insurance certificate. I’m prepared to work exactly within your guidelines too”. You never know until you ask...
Just a thought

 

[kevbac]

You say your local flying club. Is this an MAAC affiliated club? (just curious - partly because of the MAAC exemption to Part IX of the CAR - I'm a member, but I need to find someone who can certify me as being competent. I'll still do the TC Advanced, but the MAAC exemption may come in handy on occasion.)
There are SO MANY places I'd love to fly around T-Bay.
I did some land-based photography around the harbour a few years ago. There's pretty much nobody around on the weekend, and there are some interesting abandoned buildings, as well as the grain silos.
I don't know whether, or how much, things have changed since then.
If I was up there, one of my 'must get' shots would be the Terry Fox Memorial. I'd park on the road below it (more than 100 feet away - horizontally - from bystanders) and fly up and out a bit. If it happens to be quite, I'd probably do a 'dronie' from it, and then a nice sweeping shot to show things from Terry's perspective. Probably a few other shots as well.
Probably lots of great shots available around Terrace Bay, too.
The whole Lake Superior shoreline is so beautiful...

 

[MsDrone]

You say your local flying club. Is this an MAAC affiliated club? (just curious - partly because of the MAAC exemption to Part IX of the CAR - I'm a member, but I need to find someone who can certify me as being competent. I'll still do the TC Advanced, but the MAAC exemption may come in handy on occasion.)
There are SO MANY places I'd love to fly around T-Bay.
I did some land-based photography around the harbour a few years ago. There's pretty much nobody around on the weekend, and there are some interesting abandoned buildings, as well as the grain silos.
I don't know whether, or how much, things have changed since then.
If I was up there, one of my 'must get' shots would be the Terry Fox Memorial. I'd park on the road below it (more than 100 feet away - horizontally - from bystanders) and fly up and out a bit. If it happens to be quite, I'd probably do a 'dronie' from it, and then a nice sweeping shot to show things from Terry's perspective. Probably a few other shots as well.
Probably lots of great shots available around Terrace Bay, too.
The whole Lake Superior shoreline is so beautiful...

Thanks for the suggestions. I have had most of those ideas but I’m realizing that I’m being a nervous new flyer. We did drive to the Terry Fox Monument but went up to the monument and it’s pretty busy, hadn’t thought about a shot from down below. We’ve also driven down by the waterfront and it would need to be early morning for there not to be many people. There were also several seaplanes landing and taking off when we drove down there, last weekend. We drove out the highway along Lake Superior today and there’s a few spots. I don’t want to get tangled up in power lines and they seem to be everywhere. There’s a really cool railway trestle I’d like to get some shots of, we drove by there and I realized I’d have to park and then hike down the road 30-45 minutes (which is fine). So now I do have a few spots on my list, better to be cautious to start with I guess.

Yes the club is MAAC affiliated, I’m thinking now I misunderstood the exemption. I thought the exemption was only when flying on club grounds, which in this case is a linking series of huge open fields. One of the guys there told me that if you’re a member and you fly there you don’t need a Pilot Certificate (I do have a basic licence). I obviously need to check out the exemption so I understand it.

The tractors are not an issue anymore btw, I went flying last night and the bales are all gone.

Anyway thanks for the comments, very much appreciated.

 

[kevbac]

Hi @MsDrone,

If MAAC certifies you as competent (I need to find someone who can test me - I'll get in touch with the clubs in the Ottawa area) - you are fully exempted from the 901.xx regulations. But, you ARE bound by the MAAC regulations, guidelines, etc. for safe flying. And your upper weight limit for flying a Remote Piloted Aircraft without a SFOC is 35kg, rather than 25kg. I don't know about you, but I'm not rushing out to get a bigger drone just so I can take advantage of that extra 10 kg. ?

Plus, you're insured if flying at MAAC sanctioned events.

 

[lowellton]

I went out to our local club’s flying field after work and was disappointed not to be able to fly, as there was a tractor mowing in the field. I need to figure out where else I can fly. Where do people fly? I have access to a family camp from Sept to April so will be able to go there in a few weeks (it’s too busy in the summer, with both people and pets) . It’s a 160 acre non-working old farm, with a river winding through it, and various old buildings etc, so that will be a great place to go. For now though I’m feeling stuck. As a new drone enthusiast I’m not sure where I can go. I know I can’t take off or land on private property (without permission). I’m thinking that I can fly on municipal property as long as there are no specific ordinances prohibiting drones, and on provincial or crown land, excluding national parks. And then I have to keep the basic rules in mind, like not within 100’ of people (so it would need to be a big park, and likely a quiet time of day), and not over moving vehicles. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

(I’m in Thunder Bay, in northwestern Ontario.)

Good day fellow canadian. I live in calgary and i fly my MM in a community park when there’s not a lot of people and a nearby city called priddis which is mostly farm. Enjoy and keep safe

 

[MsDrone]

Hi @MsDrone,

If MAAC certifies you as competent (I need to find someone who can test me - I'll get in touch with the clubs in the Ottawa area) - you are fully exempted from the 901.xx regulations. But, you ARE bound by the MAAC regulations, guidelines, etc. for safe flying. And your upper weight limit for flying a Remote Piloted Aircraft without a SFOC is 35kg, rather than 25kg. I don't know about you, but I'm not rushing out to get a bigger drone just so I can take advantage of that extra 10 kg. ?

Plus, you're insured if flying at MAAC sanctioned events.

Thanks again @kevbac . I’m not ready to be certified as competent so as to be exempt, but I’ll get there. I just reviewed that information quickly now - I did not realize my MAAC # etc had to be on my drone, I just have my TC reg # on it!

 

[kevbac]

Thanks again @kevbac . I’m not ready to be certified as competent so as to be exempt, but I’ll get there. I just reviewed that information quickly now - I did not realize my MAAC # etc had to be on my drone, I just have my TC reg # on it!

HI @MsDrone
I'm not sure if we have to have our MAAC info on the drone. Looks like I have some more reading to do.