Huh, so if Amazon really wants to start sending out those drones they no longer have any legal hurdles? I expect to hear stories of college kids capturing them before EOY.
This could really become a nice sport.
Model aircraft operators free to operate commercially in US, rules federal judge
51–60 of 143 posts
Re: Model aircraft operators free to operate commercially in US, rules federal judge
#52Earlier quoted context omitted.
Actually I'm exclusively interested in data under 400 feet! Surface-level pressure observations are my target; recent research suggests that a dense network of atmospheric pressure observations (taken on the surface) will produce a significantly higher accuracy forecast. Smartphones work nicely for this except for their lack of even geographical distribution.
That may be useful then. I don't think there's any specific rule against a fully-autonomous system, though it would certainly raise some eyebrows. If you do it with enough safeguards and in a safe area, you might get away with it.
If I recall correctly, you still technically need "line of sight" to the drone.
Re: Model aircraft operators free to operate commercially in US, rules federal judge
#53So as a pilot of a manned aircraft what does this mean for the safety of my flights? Do I need to start trying to avoid unlicensed, unlit, and unannounced drone aircraft whenever I'm below 400ft AGL? Edit: Thanks to everyone below for your thoughtful comments. My replies are as follows: 1) Regarding model aircraft - I would argue that the low density of these operations at the moment is what has prevented an incident…
To your edit number 1: the FAA notices around model aircraft already require that the aircraft stay within LoS.
Nothing changes with this decision with respect to what can fly or where it can fly. All this decision does is reinforces the common sense conclusion that a model plane is a model plane regardless of what computers it has on it or if someone is getting paid to fly it around.
I do agree that density might increase, but if operators are working within the letter of the law "model airplane" class drones still won't be operating in densely populated areas, around airports, or outside of operator LoS.
It is worth noting that the ruling re-enforces guidelines around model aircraft as simply "voluntary," but that isn't a change from the past.
Re: Model aircraft operators free to operate commercially in US, rules federal judge
#54IANAL, but can we get a reading of the actual decision? As much as I'd like to take this on face value, dronehire.org may have a bias.
The article linked has a link to the actual decision: http://www.scribd.com/doc/211088332/Pirker-Decision
Yes, but IANAL. There's a reading above by not a lawyer as well, which was helpful.
Re: Model aircraft operators free to operate commercially in US, rules federal judge
#55Huh, so if Amazon really wants to start sending out those drones they no longer have any legal hurdles? I expect to hear stories of college kids capturing them before EOY.
Capture, hell - I'd enjoy shooting them down with my Remington 877 Express (with gooseload), or maybe my .243 Ruger rifle....but only if they are hovering.
So you go around randomly destroying other people's property?
Re: Model aircraft operators free to operate commercially in US, rules federal judge
#56It's not quite so big as the headline, but it's still good. Here's the scoop: The FAA has long had rules for model aircraft, which would include many small "drones", and under which you can personally operate them now. You're supposed to stay low and away from stuff you could damage. They also (as of fairly recently) have some rules for UAS (unmanned aerial systems) that are more like the rules for real aircraft, and…
What's the difference between model aircraft and UAS? Is it line of sight flying?
Re: Model aircraft operators free to operate commercially in US, rules federal judge
#57Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't think that's a hurdle. I imagine that would be some form of trespassing onto amazon's very expensive property.
Yep, and college students have no historical record of law breaking or vandalism in the name of entertainment whatsoever.
Well society hasn't crumbled due to college students wrecking everything yet, so we must have figured out a way to deal with the drunk idiots. Perhaps some variation on the "If they break the law, arrest them for it." technique is being employed...
Re: Model aircraft operators free to operate commercially in US, rules federal judge
#58Earlier quoted context omitted.
Well, I do have a vision where solar power is actually enough, but that's certainly not possible today. This might work in 3-4 years, depending on what happens in battery tech and solar efficiency. Otherwise, I think you might have to build a network similar to Matternet [1] / Tesla Supercharger; making a ground-based charging infrastructure investment might be necessary to get started, even if that tech isn't necess…
Have you considered buying solar-powered drones from Titan Aerospace before Facebook snatches them up? Probably a bit pricey, but they are marketed as atmospheric satellites.
Titan Aerospace's offerings are tailored for high altitude use - this gentleman is looking for drones flying under 400 feet. Different application.
Re: Model aircraft operators free to operate commercially in US, rules federal judge
#59Earlier quoted context omitted.
That may be useful then. I don't think there's any specific rule against a fully-autonomous system, though it would certainly raise some eyebrows. If you do it with enough safeguards and in a safe area, you might get away with it.
If I recall correctly, you still technically need "line of sight" to the drone.
Somewhere I think I saw something about requiring the ability to take manual control too, which would require line of sight.
Maybe I'm thinking of AMA requirements though... (think model airplanes, not doctors - although, doctors also require line of sight)
Re: Model aircraft operators free to operate commercially in US, rules federal judge
#60It's not quite so big as the headline, but it's still good. Here's the scoop: The FAA has long had rules for model aircraft, which would include many small "drones", and under which you can personally operate them now. You're supposed to stay low and away from stuff you could damage. They also (as of fairly recently) have some rules for UAS (unmanned aerial systems) that are more like the rules for real aircraft, and…
What's the difference between model aircraft and UAS? Is it line of sight flying?
Looks pretty grey
"There are already hobbyists that operate "drones" by any reasonable definition. The term in the hobby is "FPV" (First Person View) - you install a camera and a transmitter on your aircraft and pilot it from a first-person perspective using a monitor on the ground. The radios on these operate by line-of-sight, but the range is far beyond visual range. You can find plenty of videos on Youtube just searching for "fpv radio control" or variations thereof. Operation of these for recreational purposes is currently unrestricted in the US. This may also change."