5 ms·

Oh sweet local rocketry club Jesus. It’s only 500ft?

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
cj 3y ago
I could be wrong, but 500ft is the minimum recommended altitude for helicopters. That might have something to do with it.
reactordev 3y ago
depending on where you are. Yes. That's the moment you enter controlled airspace. Obviously it depends on where you are. In NYC, it's 500ft. In NM, it's FL10 or 10,000 ft. Either way, you should get the FAA involved so they don't waste tax payer dollars on F-16s. If you're flying an amateur rocket above minimums, it must adhere to Part 101 or be waived by FAA.
- bombcar 3y ago
  Everything below 500 is Class G (the G is for ground!) except right near airports, where controlled airspace goes down to the ground. Class G can go much higher than 500 feet in some places.
  - reactordev 3y ago
    I know, but someone in Class A, or B, that gets a drone for christmas might want to do some research before flying (some will prevent you from flying at all!). As too with amateur rockets (not the little model hobby kind) but anything that would show up on radar. ATC doesn't like it when things magically appear.
LorenPechtel 3y ago
Long, long ago when I did a bit of rocketry we simply worked on a basis of no launching if there was anything in the sky. We were behind mountains from any radars, almost nothing would have been visible and hobby rockets are almost devoid of metal anyway. I know the guys shooting the high power stuff need FAA clearances.
- reactordev 3y ago
  Back then, ATC were a little more relaxed. “Was that a bird? I dunno. It just popped up and then disappeared. Strange” could have been what was said. Now, any blip is a phone call upstairs. Radar is a lot more accurate and ATC have the nerves. A balloon, a rocket, someone’s potato gun, anything that hits airspace on radar is going to be investigated, at minimum. More than likely, for small hobby rockets, you’ll get away with it or maybe talk to a local law enforcement officer but fly anything large enough, you’ll get a visit from the G men.
  - LorenPechtel 3y ago
    As I said, we were behind mountains. Not to hide from the radars but to find a sufficiently large open space that we could be confident everything would fall in said open space and flat enough we could pursue rockets without worrying about being inhibited by the terrain. And with vegetation sparse enough that if something did catch fire it couldn't spread.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

cj 3y ago

I could be wrong, but 500ft is the minimum recommended altitude for helicopters. That might have something to do with it.

reactordev 3y ago

depending on where you are. Yes. That's the moment you enter controlled airspace. Obviously it depends on where you are. In NYC, it's 500ft. In NM, it's FL10 or 10,000 ft. Either way, you should get the FAA involved so they don't waste tax payer dollars on F-16s. If you're flying an amateur rocket above minimums, it must adhere to Part 101 or be waived by FAA.

bombcar 3y ago
Everything below 500 is Class G (the G is for ground!) except right near airports, where controlled airspace goes down to the ground. Class G can go much higher than 500 feet in some places.
- reactordev 3y ago
  I know, but someone in Class A, or B, that gets a drone for christmas might want to do some research before flying (some will prevent you from flying at all!). As too with amateur rockets (not the little model hobby kind) but anything that would show up on radar. ATC doesn't like it when things magically appear.

LorenPechtel 3y ago

Long, long ago when I did a bit of rocketry we simply worked on a basis of no launching if there was anything in the sky. We were behind mountains from any radars, almost nothing would have been visible and hobby rockets are almost devoid of metal anyway. I know the guys shooting the high power stuff need FAA clearances.

reactordev 3y ago
Back then, ATC were a little more relaxed. “Was that a bird? I dunno. It just popped up and then disappeared. Strange” could have been what was said. Now, any blip is a phone call upstairs. Radar is a lot more accurate and ATC have the nerves. A balloon, a rocket, someone’s potato gun, anything that hits airspace on radar is going to be investigated, at minimum. More than likely, for small hobby rockets, you’ll get away with it or maybe talk to a local law enforcement officer but fly anything large enough, you’ll get a visit from the G men.
- LorenPechtel 3y ago
  As I said, we were behind mountains. Not to hide from the radars but to find a sufficiently large open space that we could be confident everything would fall in said open space and flat enough we could pursue rockets without worrying about being inhibited by the terrain. And with vegetation sparse enough that if something did catch fire it couldn't spread.