Nowhere did I say the FAA should regulate all aspects of this. They should handle licensing and basic regulation. There are a host of other laws that did not contemplate this technology 'taking off' the way it has. Laws will need a tweak here and there. In the meantime many foreseeable incidents will be relegated to the civil courts.
As for others, how they get 'banning' from licensing and regulating I'll never know...
They are already a concern here.
Last week, peak fire fighting time, massive aerial water bombing and a warning was forced to be given the first whiff of a drone and all water bombing would stop immediately.
It was in rugged terrain unsuitable for old fire fighting methods.
Not sure I agree with attitude anything is permissible in this age.
There are some things where one draws a line, and plenty come to mind.
Robillard made it clear your domain for fee property is from the center of the earth through your bounds to the heights of the heavens. Any encroachment is a diminishment to your estate.
But, law since then has contracted one's ownership. Jets at 35,000 feet, not a problem. Drones @ 35' looking into your bedroom, big problem. If the drone is within a public R/W how can it be penalised worse than a paparazzi? It's just a camera platform. OTOH, actual damage from a drone flight should be handled in a civil court.
Drone problems
The stories here are certainly anecdotal and maybe exaggerated, but these are the types of idiots that are out there and cause the issues that responsible operators will need to deal with:
*User* problems
I agree that stupid people with drones are a problem. What I fail to understand is why amateur hobbyist are given a free pass to fly these things, but if you are for example, a professional real estate photographer, who just wants to hover a drone 50' above the ground to take dramatic photos of a house, you get a cease and desist order and the threat of a $10,000 fine...
That exact thing happened to a photographer in Minnesota, I believe, who said he had been flying model aircraft of years. He made the point that he had the skill, knowledge, and experience in operating and maintaining to fly them safely and within the FAA hobbyist guidelines ... but it was illegal for him to do so. While, a hobbyist could literally buy one off the self, and fly without any training, experience, or knowledge of the rules. Heck, I bought one, watched a few youtube video, took in the backyard and took off ... It was as easy as that ... I didn't even have to watch the youtube videos if I didn't want to.
I think the FAA needs to acknowledge the difference between "drones" or "FPV flying" and "radio controlled line of sight flying", and open the latter up to commercial use under the same rules as hobbyist (i.e., under 500', line of sight, under the user's control, away from airports, etc.) ... Then, for the true "drones", like gatewings, have some addition rules, regulations, licensing, etc.
No harm intended. I just think people need to be prosecuted under existing laws before we consider another layer of government intrusions. More laws, regulations, licensing doesn't eliminate stupid people doing stupid things.
I think the common sense approach would be to establish air space rules. Below a certain elevation above the ground you can fly your toy without any special precautions. Above that elevation, where you will be sharing the air space with aircraft, you need a flight plan and perhaps a license.
In addition there should be a payload class. If smaller devices crash while flying over populated areas, then potential injury would be much smaller than say a larger device capable of larger payloads.
FAA ADS-B C?
I'm wondering for small drones if this device could be at the ground rebroadcasting the position of the drone in order to minimize weight? I suppose there would be the danger of the drone getting out of range of the device and losing its position...
This ought to be simple.
Anything below X of the ground elevation constitutes trespassing and is prohibted without the land owners permission.
Anything above X is subject to the same regulations as aircraft with humans on board.
So, if you're taking pictures from a done 100 feet off the ground, you're fine. No permits needed. If you're in airspace used by planes, get the permits. Let's not turn this into requiring 2000 hours of classes and spending $1500 for permits to fly a small drone with a camera.
*User* problems
The hobby plane pilots I've known load up and go their local chapter airports and fly their planes in designated airspace.
There is lack of organization with the new generation of drone pilots.
They are all in mind that they don't have to follow protocol and file any flight plan for approval, they just take off and test their luck and everyone's patience.
:whistle:
*User* problems
There is no flight plan requirement for hobby use, you can fly them just about any place you like as long as it's line of site and below a certain altitude, and away from airports ... That's my point .... Virtually no rules for hobby use, but a complete ban for commercial use, makes no sense at all. The reason why the guy above got in trouble isn't because he was being an a-hole, it's because he charged a fee.
The drone issue is growing faster than the FAA and FCC can come up with guidelines.
Too many of the users are not concerned with present guidelines because they did not list drones as an aircraft when they were prepared for permission to fly.
I would bet there are those in office that want to tax this new service in some manner because they don't like anyone riding for free.
When something goes from hobby to commercial use, government's protect the public card is thrown and they must add it's use under one of their agencies to collect the money and keep a list of permitted users.
Local law enforcement is already in the mind that airspace is theirs and they plan to use it at will, they have said as much thru the news and newspapers.
The man on the news this last weekend stated that he was already up and running collecting evidence for ongoing ops. He did not give his name or company, but appeared he had a military background and is now in the private sector. Admitting that the drones could be used for good and bad depending who was controlling the drone.
All this makes me want to order and install a jammer. OH, yea, they were ruled illegal.
> Personally, I'm pretty sure my air rights exist to the limit of the range of my Remington 1100.
I agree with this. If you have one within X feet of the ground, you are trespassing and the owner has the right to remove the drone any way possible. I don't know what X is, but it should be low enough to not interfere with air traffic and high enough to not be a nuisciance.
nutt'n a lead filled projectile can't fix.
Want to shoot down a drone?
You may want to read the laws on willful destruction of someone else's property or discharging a firearm in certain places. Probably will get you in more trouble than the UAV operator.
*User* problems
I'd believe that if my neighbor expects to use my yard and airspace to launch and land and text his drone, he had best check with my wife before it goes sailing near her Lexus.
She has never thought of pulling out the Remington 1100, but I would imagine that event would prompt a possible solution for her.
Sidenote - "If a person doesn't know about firearm safety, they they don't need to ever hold one, much less use one".
I've seen many an angry mom stand their ground over these little toy copters that have been on the market for years. They don't hold up well to the least of objects blocking their path.
[sarcasm]I'd like to see one of those quad copters take on a bait casting net[/sarcasm]
There is nothing wrong with someone that is using good sense, proper ethics and trying to make a living with the tools they have.
The reckless guy that thinks that what he wants to do and can do is going to be given an instant approval without any warnings, permission and planning to notify others of their intent, well, they are simply looking for trouble.
0.02
Want to shoot down a drone?
Well, I was just duck hunt'n and bygollie I thought it was a freaky('n) duck! So just give me the citation for discharging a fire arm in city limits and I'll be on my way.
Implements for swatting down pesky privacy invading drones:
Sling shots, blunt tip arrows, electronic interference, model rockets, fireworks and what ever else you can think of.
Have FUN!!