Having obtained my Part 107, I have come to conclude that the entire FAA system is actually a (manned flight) pilot's club.
It is a whole ecosystem of flight instructors etc which has resulted in an admittedly great system of producing qualified pilots. But, it also has acted as a drag on drone tech and implementation in this county and has actually discouraged the safest implementation and uses of drones in order to protect the jobs of their pilots.
But, it also has acted as a drag on drone tech and implementation in this county and has actually discouraged the safest implementation and uses of drones in order to protect the jobs of their pilots.
I'm not so sure about this.?ÿ One of my buddies here is a private pilot and he used to fly for aerial surveys early on in his career (switched to flying medevac stuff, and now flies for random rich guys).?ÿ Since he has a little bit of familiarity with survey and with the explosion of drones we sometimes talk about this stuff.?ÿ In fact, a group of us were out having a beer a couple weeks ago and we got to talking about this.?ÿ He said he could easily get a drone license but wouldn't dare fly one because any infraction incurred while doing so would also result in a suspension of his airplane license.
I really know nothing about the FAA stuff but I'm guessing it's full of all the red tape and bureaucracy that you might expect.
Thanks for the heads up.?ÿ I don't know what services he provides.?ÿ I'm sure the attorneys and the courts will figure it out.
here are some things that he and his legal representation say he offered before the board told him to stop (and he complied):
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24. Between 2017 and 2019, Michael offered drone photography services through a
single-member LLC (360 Virtual Drone Services LLC) to clients, including real-estate
developers, property managers, realtors, entertainment companies, retail stores, and individuals.
25. For example, one real-estate developer hired Michael to perform weekly flyovers
of the developer??s property, capture images, stitch the images together using computer software,
and provide him with an updated orthomosaic picture of his property. In this way, the client
could regularly monitor the state of the property.
26. Similarly, a local Walmart hired Michael to fly his drone over a distribution
center and capture images using a thermal sensor, allowing the company to identify potential
Case 5:21-cv-00137-FL Document 1 Filed 03/22/21 Page 5 of 23
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heat leaks. These images, too, were stitched together to create an orthomosaic thermal map of the
roof.
27. A mall in Wilmington, North Carolina, also hired Michael to capture aerial
images of its parking lot for composition into an orthomosaic map.
28. Realtors hired Michael to take aerial photographs of properties to use for
promotional purposes. For some of these images, Michael would add lines to his aerial
photographs indicating the rough boundaries of a piece of property based on approximations
provided to him by the realtor. At no point, however, did Michael create or offer to create images
or documents that have legal effect (such as setting property boundaries).
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These can be found on pages 5 and 6 of the complaint filed by the drone operator's lawyers.
They wouldn't have a complaint if he didn't want to make maps.?ÿ The argument the plaintiff is making is that he needed to stop making orthomosaics to comply with the board and that the board should let him make his orthorectified images (in a reference coordinate system, with dimensions, contours, etc.) because making orthomosaics with a drone is covered under free speech.?ÿ?ÿ
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As written he is in violation of NC law as I read it (and probably most states that adopted some form of the "model law". So, stop or get law changed if you don't like it.
I will also say a lot of what has ended up in surveying law was because traditionally surveyors did that work and almost impossible for others to do it. Now not so much true.
I believe with technology now, lots of folks can likely provide the same product and I believe eventually someone with deep pockets will successfully sue a board and win proving that other than boundary, a lot of stuff lumped into surveying lawas is "protection of trade".
GLO/BLM has set millions of corners that we rely on without a license, NGS and other Federal agencies set millions of control points without a license, yet almost all states require a license to do geodetic surveying for instance or any surveys based on GLO corners. Those federal surveyors were experts without a PLS and lots with a PLS are NOT an expert, they just think they are. Someone who is a UAV expert will likely eventually be able to prove the license doesn't make an expert. Not holding my breath for happening during my career or even lifetime, but I bet it does eventually.
SHG
GLO/BLM has set millions of corners that we rely on without a license, NGS and other Federal agencies set millions of control points without a license, yet almost all states require a license to do geodetic surveying for instance or any surveys based on GLO corners.?ÿ
The same rules apply to engineers.?ÿ If you work for the federal government, or in many states, if you work for the state government or utility, you don't need a PE.?ÿ
"The federal government, as a matter of constitutional law, is not required to follow state law, including PE licensing laws. That exemption means federal departments and offices have the flexibility to decide whether they want PEs in selected positions. Departments and offices that are familiar with engineering issues may require PEs in certain cases as a matter of policy. It's not uncommon, however, for departments that are unfamiliar with engineering licensure to omit such requirements." - nspe.org - federal-perspective
Those federal surveyors were experts without a PLS and lots with a PLS are NOT an expert, they just think they are.
I don't think the licensing process is foolproof.?ÿ Just an attempt to control the quality.?ÿNo license is a guarantee of quality and I think that goes for surveyors, engineers, doctors, nurses, etc.?ÿ?ÿ
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The respect of my peers who are familiar with my work and my clients means much more to me than the word Professional.?ÿ In New York I was a Licensed Land Surveyor and honestly I wished the other two said that.?ÿ The word has lost a lot of meaning in our modern society IMHO.?ÿ?ÿ
I feel the same way concerning the title of PLS.?ÿ It doesn't seem right to call oneself a professional.?ÿ I grew up believing that professional meant one who holds themselves to a higher standard than the average.?ÿ Now it seems as though the word gets a qualifier, as in, "that fella is a true professional".?ÿ?ÿ
Coming from outside the US I'll not directly comment on this case, but the problem of drone operators who have "software" is worldwide. There is a world of duifference between an orthomosaic with "contours" and a real survey. Somebody commented earlier in this thread about inaccuracies in long grass. The largest part of most surveys we fly consists of the ground verification work -?ÿ GPS points to calibrate the effect of all the main different vegetation types etc. These are then used to apply adjustments to each vegetation type and the results compared for accuracy with a separate set of ground check readings (typically the two tie within better than 5cm.).
Yes, it means you do have to walk much of the site, but only to a fraction you would if you carried out full ground survey. For landfill and quarries it is much safer. All too often we see junk produced by non-surveyors who have no understanding of how the computer derives a model from the images and cannot recognise their end product as being junk - plans that a real surveyor would instrinctively recognise as being wrong, instantly.
This is a better article.
While much of what he is doing probably shouldn't be a concern from a protecting the public standpoint. What about "to better understand where their fences should be?"
More misinformation as the rule is intended to protect the public NOT the surveyor.?ÿ But that's what I expect from trash media.
Let these guys run around and cause homeowners to build fences in the wrong spots.?ÿ Once enough people are forced to tear down their $5000 fence I'm guessing the problem will fix itself.
From the AP article:
But after two years of steady business, Jones was slapped by the state of North Carolina in 2018 with an order that grounded his drone..."I would just like to have the right back to fly,? Jones said.
That's weird, because no one ever took his flying "right" (which is not really a thing but whatever) away.
But Kurt Carraway, executive director of the Applied Aviation Research Center at Kansas State University, said licensing boards should do more to embrace partnerships by researching the accuracy of drone mapping and encouraging the use of drones, particularly in places where a surveyor can??t safely do the work.
??I would think that with the continued development of technologies and positional accuracy that it??s likely that drone data can be captured in a way that is compliant with those surveying standards,? Carraway said.
Do these people honestly think that we DON'T already have standards, workflows, and procedures for incorporating remote sensing data into our products?
"He??s compromised by partnering as a sub-contractor with engineering firms or surveying companies, but he??d like to do the work on his own."
Hey, that's great. I'd like to do appendectomies, but I don't have the right to do them just because I have a sharp knife.
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They did not interview a single surveyor or photogrammetrist for that "article"...
The idiotic articles are our own fault. We tell everyone we measure stuff and have great tools that make it easy. What else should they think?
You can train anyone to measure. The part of recognizing and evaluating evidence, followed by making reasoned decisions in accordance with statutes and case law is a little tougher. You can weed out even more when you add in memorializing your footsteps so they may be followed. Oh, forgot the part about freezing cold, oppressive heat, bug bites, animal attacks and the inevitable drunk neighbor who 'used to survey'.?ÿ
More to the point, the board is telling him not to fly. They are telling him not to provide regulated services without demonstrating competence and obtaining a license.
The Priority of Calls for Evidence
1) Lines actually run in the field and proven from evidence
2) Monuments and/or Boundaries set and called for in the
description
A. Natural Monuments
B. Artificial Monuments
3) Adjoiners (if Senior)
4) Courses
A. Bearings then Distances (Metes and Bounds States)
B. Distances then Bearings (GLO States)
5) Recitation of Area
A. May be controlling
B. May be evidentiary
6) Coordinates
Not much new in the law.?ÿ Some surveyors are like little kids and only want to talk about their new technologies.
I'm not much different but until I see a change the law it is only a tool and not THE TOOL.
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The dignity of calls is well settled in most jurisdictions. The expertise comes in knowing the sources of evidence and recognizing it once found. It also takes some good effort to stay current on what the courts have to say about what is and is not evidence and how to recognize critical fact patterns. The math and tools is the easy part.
The real work is in determining where the evidence says the boundary is and how to navigate local ordiances without punting to an attorney.?ÿ
There are new things in boudandy law all the time, although not often in dignity of calls.?ÿ