4 ms·

They are generally regulated by weight at least. I fly drones as a photographer/videographer and, for the most part, don't find the regulations too heavy hande

by prawn 7y ago

They are generally regulated by weight at least. I fly drones as a photographer/videographer and, for the most part, don't find the regulations too heavy handed. Worrying about distance from every single tiny airfield is the main one since, as you noted, they are everywhere (unmanned fields, helipads, etc). Applied as a hard-and-fast rule, this can be a bit much when you just want a tree-height photo of a building or similar. I was in the US recently and took my drone (https://www.instagram.com/__serio__/ https://www.instagram.com/__serio__/ ). We were often in national parks, and there are also airfields everywhere so I barely found opportunities to fly. The official FAA app is a bit hopeless and it's often unclear about whether you're good to go or not. I think that a much better app from the authorities would be a major help. The casual drone operators I know in Australia make use of the official app here to stay abreast of options.

brokenmachine 7y ago
>The casual drone operators I know in Australia make use of the official app here to stay abreast of options I'm in Australia and all the "casual drone operators" I've seen DGAF and just fly the buzzing menaces wherever they want, including in National Parks. Are you allowed to fly drones over people in Australia? Because they do that too.
- prawn 7y ago
  "Buzzing menaces". Are those the buzzing menaces causing roadkill on the roads into the parks? Getting permission to fly in NT national parks is quite straightforward. My flights in other parks have been organised by tourism authorities. I don't doubt there are people (I suspect the majority are international tourists) pushing the rules. One thing I think doesn't help is that the official flight check app for drone operators often doesn't factor in national parks, or maybe it's if you don't have phone coverage in an area - common for parks. You can fly within 30m of people with their permission. Not over people though I imagine that's subjective - directly over people? Roughly over people?
  - brokenmachine 7y ago
    >"Buzzing menaces". Are those the buzzing menaces causing roadkill on the roads into the parks? If you're trying to compare cars to drones then IMO, that is a false comparison. You usually need to use a car to get into the park. Cars have a purpose. People generally turn their cars off when they arrive and get out to walk around. Drones flying around dominates the area with their annoying sound for no reason. Even though I hate consumer drones (especially in National Parks), I don't have much problem with people who actually go through the proper channels. I strongly doubt the annoying people are getting permission to fly. On multiple occasions, I've had people flying their drones directly over my head while I was at a lookout. There is little more irritating than going out of your way to enjoy a bit of nature and peace and quiet only to have it ruined by an idiot with a drone, especially when it almost certainly is against the rules anyway. Can we not have a single quiet place?
    - prawn 7y ago
      My point is to consider your language. People had strong reactions to books, magazines, radio and TV as they were introduced. Each were considered the end of times by at least someone. Let's look at some of your bits here: "dominates the area with their annoying sound for no reason", "hate consumer drones", "little more irritating than going out of your way to enjoy a bit of nature and peace and quiet only to have it ruined by an idiot with a drone". Drones have a purpose, maybe it's just not something you appreciate. Cars dominate areas with their annoying sounds, and I'd suggest that you're more used to their sound so you tune it out. I've been to national parks in dozens of countries around the world and, like you, I appreciate peace and quiet, but I've heard planes and helicopters go over in almost all of them. They're background noise because they are not new, so no one gets outraged. Go to a national park almost anywhere central in the USA and the sky is streaked with contrails that impact every scene and photo for the entire day. At Kings Canyon last year, someone flew a drone over the area and everyone looked up. Minutes before and after (in fact, most of the day), much much louder scenic helicopters flew a circuit and almost no one reacted at all. (You can get easy permission to fly a drone at Kings Canyon, you're just not meant to fly over the canyon proper and rim.) Like I said, I suspect most flying drones in parks are not locals so they figure they'll be gone before someone sees their photos online and pulls them up for it.

by prawn 7y ago

brokenmachine 7y ago

>The casual drone operators I know in Australia make use of the official app here to stay abreast of options I'm in Australia and all the "casual drone operators" I've seen DGAF and just fly the buzzing menaces wherever they want, including in National Parks. Are you allowed to fly drones over people in Australia? Because they do that too.

prawn 7y ago
"Buzzing menaces". Are those the buzzing menaces causing roadkill on the roads into the parks? Getting permission to fly in NT national parks is quite straightforward. My flights in other parks have been organised by tourism authorities. I don't doubt there are people (I suspect the majority are international tourists) pushing the rules. One thing I think doesn't help is that the official flight check app for drone operators often doesn't factor in national parks, or maybe it's if you don't have phone coverage in an area - common for parks. You can fly within 30m of people with their permission. Not over people though I imagine that's subjective - directly over people? Roughly over people?
- brokenmachine 7y ago
  >"Buzzing menaces". Are those the buzzing menaces causing roadkill on the roads into the parks? If you're trying to compare cars to drones then IMO, that is a false comparison. You usually need to use a car to get into the park. Cars have a purpose. People generally turn their cars off when they arrive and get out to walk around. Drones flying around dominates the area with their annoying sound for no reason. Even though I hate consumer drones (especially in National Parks), I don't have much problem with people who actually go through the proper channels. I strongly doubt the annoying people are getting permission to fly. On multiple occasions, I've had people flying their drones directly over my head while I was at a lookout. There is little more irritating than going out of your way to enjoy a bit of nature and peace and quiet only to have it ruined by an idiot with a drone, especially when it almost certainly is against the rules anyway. Can we not have a single quiet place?
  - prawn 7y ago
    My point is to consider your language. People had strong reactions to books, magazines, radio and TV as they were introduced. Each were considered the end of times by at least someone. Let's look at some of your bits here: "dominates the area with their annoying sound for no reason", "hate consumer drones", "little more irritating than going out of your way to enjoy a bit of nature and peace and quiet only to have it ruined by an idiot with a drone". Drones have a purpose, maybe it's just not something you appreciate. Cars dominate areas with their annoying sounds, and I'd suggest that you're more used to their sound so you tune it out. I've been to national parks in dozens of countries around the world and, like you, I appreciate peace and quiet, but I've heard planes and helicopters go over in almost all of them. They're background noise because they are not new, so no one gets outraged. Go to a national park almost anywhere central in the USA and the sky is streaked with contrails that impact every scene and photo for the entire day. At Kings Canyon last year, someone flew a drone over the area and everyone looked up. Minutes before and after (in fact, most of the day), much much louder scenic helicopters flew a circuit and almost no one reacted at all. (You can get easy permission to fly a drone at Kings Canyon, you're just not meant to fly over the canyon proper and rim.) Like I said, I suspect most flying drones in parks are not locals so they figure they'll be gone before someone sees their photos online and pulls them up for it.