3 ms·

The hobby can be dangerous. Overall, it isn't problematic, but there are a few drone hobbyists that ruin it for the rest, frequently due to lack of training. Th

The hobby can be dangerous. Overall, it isn't problematic, but there are a few drone hobbyists that ruin it for the rest, frequently due to lack of training. There's the person who hit the Space Needle [0], the person who crashed their drone mid-day in SF after they lost connection with it and it almost hit people walking on the sidewalk [1]. The ease of buying one and being able to use it means it's possible to fly it without having any knowledge of all the ways it could go wrong. [0]: https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/crime/man-charged-with-piloting-drone-that-struck-space-needle-on-new-years-eve/ https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/crime/man-charged-... (Open in incognito if you run into the paywall) [1]: https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/drone-crashes-outside-millennium-tower-sinking-sf-13216498.php https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/drone-crashes-ou...

rhinoceraptor 8y ago
AFAICT the SF crash was done by a professional hired to inspect the crack, using a drone for business of any kind requires a part 107 certification.
rrdharan 8y ago
Don't forget the guy who crashed his drone in a Yellowstone geyser potentially causing irreparable environmental damage: https://www.idahostatejournal.com/members/a-crashed-drone-could-destroy-yellowstone-s-grand-prismatic-spring/article_009fb83c-20a0-11e5-9dcd-ffc330206e7a.amp.html https://www.idahostatejournal.com/members/a-crashed-drone-co... This one really pissed me off...
tzs 8y ago
Don't forget the idiots who fly drones at forest fires, which several times last year resulted in fire-fighting tanker planes being diverted away. I've heard people say that keeping the tankers away when a drone is in the same airspace is an overreaction, but those people are not thinking it through. There are several factors that make fire-fighting flights very difficult for the pilots. 1. They are flying very low. 2. The air over and around large fires is often very turbulent. 3. The plane is heavily loaded, making it less nimble than normal, and making maneuvers put much more stress on the plane than they would on a less loaded plane. The pilots are in a dangerous, stressful situation that requires their upmost concentration. Anything that distracts them is dangerous.
King-Aaron 8y ago
> The hobby can be dangerous People have been killed by RC aircraft. I don't know if any accidents with quadcopters have caused injury (I'd assume having one fall on you from height wouldn't be fun), but there was a story a few years ago where a bloke killed himself with an RC helicopter. https://nypost.com/2013/09/05/man-decapitated-by-remote-controlled-toy-helicopter/ https://nypost.com/2013/09/05/man-decapitated-by-remote-cont...

rhinoceraptor 8y ago

AFAICT the SF crash was done by a professional hired to inspect the crack, using a drone for business of any kind requires a part 107 certification.

rrdharan 8y ago

Don't forget the guy who crashed his drone in a Yellowstone geyser potentially causing irreparable environmental damage: https://www.idahostatejournal.com/members/a-crashed-drone-could-destroy-yellowstone-s-grand-prismatic-spring/article_009fb83c-20a0-11e5-9dcd-ffc330206e7a.amp.html https://www.idahostatejournal.com/members/a-crashed-drone-co... This one really pissed me off...

tzs 8y ago

Don't forget the idiots who fly drones at forest fires, which several times last year resulted in fire-fighting tanker planes being diverted away. I've heard people say that keeping the tankers away when a drone is in the same airspace is an overreaction, but those people are not thinking it through. There are several factors that make fire-fighting flights very difficult for the pilots. 1. They are flying very low. 2. The air over and around large fires is often very turbulent. 3. The plane is heavily loaded, making it less nimble than normal, and making maneuvers put much more stress on the plane than they would on a less loaded plane. The pilots are in a dangerous, stressful situation that requires their upmost concentration. Anything that distracts them is dangerous.

King-Aaron 8y ago

> The hobby can be dangerous People have been killed by RC aircraft. I don't know if any accidents with quadcopters have caused injury (I'd assume having one fall on you from height wouldn't be fun), but there was a story a few years ago where a bloke killed himself with an RC helicopter. https://nypost.com/2013/09/05/man-decapitated-by-remote-controlled-toy-helicopter/ https://nypost.com/2013/09/05/man-decapitated-by-remote-cont...