6 ms·

This is odd: night would be the time when I would think people don't want to hear "whirrrrrrr...' of drones flying over their houses.

Judgmentality 6y ago
Yeah, even if all of the logistical and technical issues of drone delivery make it economically viable for Amazon (or whoever) - I think I might boycott Amazon as a company if they started using drones for any deliveries. They are just so obnoxiously loud I would probably welcome people shooting them out of the sky (or if you're awesome you can use an eagle). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8v5hCxBZTh0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8v5hCxBZTh0 https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-europe-35750816 https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-europe-35750816
- itisit 6y ago
  Plenty of companies hard at work on making anti-drone tech consumer friendly. Rejoice!
  - ineedasername 6y ago
    Which will quickly be made illegal if it interferes with major commercial activity
    - leetcrew 6y ago
      I'm not sure what "anti-drone tech" could mean other than RF jamming, which is already very illegal.
      - reaperducer 6y ago
        Birdshot?
        jakear 6y ago
        I’d pay good money for a shotgun-like device that had power enough to take down the drones foreigners like to fly meters from my face videotaping me as I walk down the beach, but not powerful enough to be dangerous to use in such contexts.
        leetcrew 6y ago
        hard to see how this could be legal. you don't get to destroy other people's stuff just because they are annoying you with it. even if what they are doing is not quite legal, you would probably end up on the wrong side of the law yourself.
        itisit 6y ago
        > you don't get to destroy other people's stuff just because they are annoying you with it. https://www.popularmechanics.com/flight/drones/news/a17969/man-who-shot-down-drone-cleared-of-all-charges/ https://www.popularmechanics.com/flight/drones/news/a17969/m...
        leetcrew 6y ago
        right, but that was on the dude's property, not a public beach. also it was in kentucky.
        reaperducer 6y ago
        Even on a public beach, it could be harassment. IANAL, but it might even qualify as assault.
        jessaustin 6y ago
        If the "foreigners" are visitors to USA, they would face real difficulty getting the law interested in this sort of case. Perhaps other nations are more welcoming to obnoxious tech dudes?
        6y ago
      - jakear 6y ago
        High velocity low mass shot pellets propelled in the drone’s general direction via pyrotechnics or similar?
noizejoy 6y ago
Noise pollution can be regulated separately.
- rangersanger 6y ago
  It should be part of the rule allowing them to fly at night. It's clearly related, why delay?
  - Triv888 6y ago
    because the Gov. only likes to combine laws when it suits them... i.e.: corona virus stimulus package and felony for streaming
    - noizejoy 6y ago
      And (some) HN commenters only like to combine issues when it suits them :-)
      - Triv888 6y ago
        guilty
  - noizejoy 6y ago
    > It's clearly related, why delay? Different regulations are handled by different authorities. Noise is often regulated at a local level. For example, someone living close to the Niagara Falls may not be bothered by the same drone noise that someone in a remote area without much ambient noise might be.
RandallBrown 6y ago
I've never heard a drone even close to as loud as my neighbor's motorcycle but it's legal to drive that any time. I have a small DJI Mini 2 drone and it's pretty much impossible to hear over the street noise in my neighborhood if it's more than about 50 feet up in the air.
- Sodman 6y ago
  Motorcycles are certainly worse than drones in terms of noise pollution! I've never had a drone audible from 2 streets over with my double glazed windows shut, but I hear motorcycles daily (and nightly).
  - lb504 6y ago
    In North America it's very common for motorcyclist to use aftermarket exhausts that are louder than stock parts, and often against local regulations.
- rpedela 6y ago
  I think a better analogy would be living near an airport like I do. Depending on the day and weather, even my small airport is quite loud and annoying. My neighbor's motorcycle is also louder than the planes, except the occasional military jet, but that noise is far less frequent than the planes. I think drone delivery will mean everyone in cities and suburbs will feel like they live near a small airport on a clear day. I too am not looking forward to the flying drone future. I think we should be working on reducing noise as much as possible, not create more in the name of slightly more convenient consumerism.

Judgmentality 6y ago

Yeah, even if all of the logistical and technical issues of drone delivery make it economically viable for Amazon (or whoever) - I think I might boycott Amazon as a company if they started using drones for any deliveries. They are just so obnoxiously loud I would probably welcome people shooting them out of the sky (or if you're awesome you can use an eagle). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8v5hCxBZTh0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8v5hCxBZTh0 https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-europe-35750816 https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-europe-35750816

itisit 6y ago
Plenty of companies hard at work on making anti-drone tech consumer friendly. Rejoice!
- ineedasername 6y ago
  Which will quickly be made illegal if it interferes with major commercial activity
  - leetcrew 6y ago
    I'm not sure what "anti-drone tech" could mean other than RF jamming, which is already very illegal.
    - reaperducer 6y ago
      Birdshot?
      - jakear 6y ago
        I’d pay good money for a shotgun-like device that had power enough to take down the drones foreigners like to fly meters from my face videotaping me as I walk down the beach, but not powerful enough to be dangerous to use in such contexts.
        leetcrew 6y ago
        hard to see how this could be legal. you don't get to destroy other people's stuff just because they are annoying you with it. even if what they are doing is not quite legal, you would probably end up on the wrong side of the law yourself.
        itisit 6y ago
        > you don't get to destroy other people's stuff just because they are annoying you with it. https://www.popularmechanics.com/flight/drones/news/a17969/man-who-shot-down-drone-cleared-of-all-charges/ https://www.popularmechanics.com/flight/drones/news/a17969/m...
        leetcrew 6y ago
        right, but that was on the dude's property, not a public beach. also it was in kentucky.
        reaperducer 6y ago
        Even on a public beach, it could be harassment. IANAL, but it might even qualify as assault.
        jessaustin 6y ago
        If the "foreigners" are visitors to USA, they would face real difficulty getting the law interested in this sort of case. Perhaps other nations are more welcoming to obnoxious tech dudes?
        6y ago
    - jakear 6y ago
      High velocity low mass shot pellets propelled in the drone’s general direction via pyrotechnics or similar?

noizejoy 6y ago

Noise pollution can be regulated separately.

rangersanger 6y ago
It should be part of the rule allowing them to fly at night. It's clearly related, why delay?
- Triv888 6y ago
  because the Gov. only likes to combine laws when it suits them... i.e.: corona virus stimulus package and felony for streaming
  - noizejoy 6y ago
    And (some) HN commenters only like to combine issues when it suits them :-)
    - Triv888 6y ago
      guilty
- noizejoy 6y ago
  > It's clearly related, why delay? Different regulations are handled by different authorities. Noise is often regulated at a local level. For example, someone living close to the Niagara Falls may not be bothered by the same drone noise that someone in a remote area without much ambient noise might be.

RandallBrown 6y ago

I've never heard a drone even close to as loud as my neighbor's motorcycle but it's legal to drive that any time. I have a small DJI Mini 2 drone and it's pretty much impossible to hear over the street noise in my neighborhood if it's more than about 50 feet up in the air.

Sodman 6y ago
Motorcycles are certainly worse than drones in terms of noise pollution! I've never had a drone audible from 2 streets over with my double glazed windows shut, but I hear motorcycles daily (and nightly).
- lb504 6y ago
  In North America it's very common for motorcyclist to use aftermarket exhausts that are louder than stock parts, and often against local regulations.
rpedela 6y ago
I think a better analogy would be living near an airport like I do. Depending on the day and weather, even my small airport is quite loud and annoying. My neighbor's motorcycle is also louder than the planes, except the occasional military jet, but that noise is far less frequent than the planes. I think drone delivery will mean everyone in cities and suburbs will feel like they live near a small airport on a clear day. I too am not looking forward to the flying drone future. I think we should be working on reducing noise as much as possible, not create more in the name of slightly more convenient consumerism.