Drone Registration

[data65]

So today (December 21st) I registered my DJI Phantom with the FAA. When I first heard about required registration I was, needless to say, a little concerned and, frankly, pissed! Who are they to tell me that I have to register a remote controlled aircraft?

But after I got over that I got to thinking that this sort of legitimizes the who thing, and now I have an FAA registration certificate and a number to put on my, let's face it, glorified toy lol.

Actually registration is easy and takes about 5 minutes so no sweat there. They give you a printable card with your name and registration number so you can prove you have done the deed and avoid those pesky fines and prison time.

All-in-all I would say this is really no big deal and it only makes sense. Obey the rules and you have nothing to worry about

Just a few thoughts. Thanks for giving this a read:)

[napamule2]

Oh boy. Can I 'rent' your registration for 'a few hours of 'FUN'? I will pay you good $$$'s. I won't tell anyone you did 'it'. Quote: '2 wrongs don't make a right'. (Sorry, couldn't resist).

Chuck B

[loki]

More regulations are never really fun, however, they wouldn't have been created if people had been a little smarter about flying their drones, especially when it comes to location. Too many people are focused entirely on getting cool videos or photos and don't think about what's around, like say a heliport at a hospital or fire fighting aircraft trying to put out a forest fire.

[data65]

Very true! I can't imagine flying close to an airport or in a traffic pattern. Hell I get nervous when I get it up to 200 feet, let alone the 400 feet limit. I always worry about losing an engine and crashing into someones house. Responsibility is an absolute requirement with these things because they have great potential to do harm if misused. On top of that I don't want to see $1500 go down the toilet.

[loki]

This past summer someone made a cool looking video along the river here where it passes by our downtown. Great shots, but they were completely oblivious to the heliport just a hundred metres upstream until someone pointed it out in the comments after the video was posted. While this particular heliport is not used heavily, it does get used and the typical approach path helicopters is along the river right where the drone would have been flying.

 

Sadly, it doesn't take much with a drone to cause serious injury. Wouldn't surprise me if all drones soon have protective guards around the rotors.

 

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2015/12/toddler-loses-eyeball-after-errant-drone-slices-it-in-half/

[napamule2]

Eventually the only 'safe' place to fly these FAST FLYING 'gadgets' (it's what they ARE) is perhaps inside a big hangar. Hey, everywhere else there are ('slow') people, pets, cars, kids, airplanes, etc that one might strike. And (unless you are over a nudist camp) if you've seen one drone video - you've seen them all. Boring.

Chuck B

[ScatterbrainKid]

As usual it's a few drone cowboys who are getting sensible drone pilots a bad name, so some kind of regulation can't be a bad thing.

For example this accident happened when a drone pilot was flying his in his back yard and it hit this neighbours kid who was watching. Maybe his drone hadn't got rotor guards, which made it dangerous-

 

http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g64/PoorOldSpike/drone-eye_zpsnog6x8mr.jpg~original

[loki]

For example this accident happened when a drone pilot was flying his in his back yard and it hit this neighbours kid who was watching. Maybe his drone hadn't got rotor guards, which made it dangerous-

 

That's the same incident as in the link I posted. His drone didn't' have any guards around the rotors.

[loki]

While some people are just creating videos with their drones, there are more and more commercial uses for them. Surveying is one case that is becoming more common. They are quickly becoming far more than just fast gadgets.

 

 

Basically drones aren't going anywhere and aren't going to be restricted to indoor locations. The problem comes down to people with no training and little thought of the consequences of their actions. Hopefully these regulations help curtail most of the dumb incidents.

[ScatterbrainKid]

That's the same incident as in the link I posted. His drone didn't' have any guards around the rotors.

 

I hope the kids parents sue the socks off him..:)

PS- Another reason why governments are uptight about drones is because they can overfly secret bases and installations and take pictures with telephoto lenses.

They're too small to be picked up on radar, and can fly so high that they can't be seen by eyeballs or heard by ears, so sooner or later I'm sure vids will be appearing on youtube of Area 51 overflight footage.

Furthermore drones can swoop down to peer through windows, so they'd better keep the windows of the alien autopsy room shuttered..;)

[Rupert]

Several Forest Fire water and chemical drops had to be cancelled in California this year because of drones!! Everyone was so intent on getting good footage with their drone they caused a lot more acres to burn!! DRONE REGISTRATION AND POLICE FOLLOW UP ON BAD BEHAVIOR HAVE BEEN NEEDED FOR SOME TIME!!

 

Of course in Kentucky we sometimes don't wait for rules to change. A dirty minded young boy was flying over a neighbor's pool taking pictures of said neighbor's daughter.

 

A twelve gauge shot-gun ended that. Yes the kid tried to get the "shooter" fined or arrested. The local government said they'd lock the kid up if he did it again with a new drone.

 

My thoughts on that?

 

1. I had as dirty a mind as any teen aged boy way back when!! And from what I later learned, we boys often didn't have nearly as many dirty ideas as the girls we thought we were chasing.

 

2. As a father I'd be all for protecting my daughter, but as a realist know that's not gonna happen unless she wants it to!! And she probably doesn't want it to.

[Guest Robert455]

I sold my DJI just because of all the issues reckless people were causing. I didn't want to be even perceived as part of the problem. I can't even fly in my own back yard since I'm within an airport exclusion zone.

 

But some of the things people were doing with theirs were just so over the top. And they would post videos of their exploits until people would comment enough they would take them down. Three stand out as being especially bad.

 

One guy took off from some park or something on a wintry day, snow all around, and it was beautiful video. He climbed up and up and then rotated to take in the view. As the camera panned the end of a good sized runway came into view complete with tire marks and everything. And he was perfectly lined up and in the glide slope.

 

Another guy took his to the Dallas AT&T Stadium between Dallas and Ft. Worth and was flying high over it. He panned down to take in the whole stadium and surrounding parking lot as a 737 shadow entered the frame (probably on approach to DFW). Shadows were such that the drone was probably pretty close to where the 737 was but I couldn't tell the altitude difference. Still, it was stupid as all hell.

 

And last was a guy who set his down in front of his lawn chair staring back at him. He then took off and climbed up. Straight up. Through a fair cloud layer and broke out on top. One of the comments was from someone who had identified the location where the guy was who flew the drone and once again, he was right in the approach to some airport. Totally clueless.

 

Of course then there are all the people who try to grab them out of the air and cut their hands, fingers, arms, and legs to the bone on the sharp props. Enrique Iglesias even did that at a concert. (

) Cringeworthy. Another guy cut his arm and hand so bad he had to make a tourniquet out of his socks to get himself to a hospital. He was flying alone using carbon fiber (rigid and sharp) props.

[Rupert]

Yes, stupid people do stupid things! We've had at least three incidents near here during the last few months of drones crashing inside stadiums where sports were being played. One cut a fan pretty badly.

 

One "pilot" was identified as being a tailgater that was so drunk they wouldn't let him through the turnstile!! I wasn't aware you could ever be too drunk to get into a college football game!!??

[napamule2]

The agriculture community ('farmers') hire people who use drones to inspect their crop from the air. The drone video can show where infestations are. That is a good use for drones. the 'areas of interest' are more varied than one might think. Use by military is one. So, yes there are 'good' uses for drones. IF controled by trained operators.

Chuck B

[Jim Robinson]

Well... I fail to see how registering a drone stops it from taking a kid's eye out or occupying the same airspace as a real aircraft. I think a more effective solution would be to outlaw pre-assembled ready to fly drones since any idiot can take one out of the box, charge the batteries, and commence to committ stupidity within 20 minutes. At least if you had to assemble it and maybe purchase batteries and charger separately it would weed out some of the more clueless ones. Maybe the FAA should impose a 51% rule on drones like they do with experimentals.

 

I was suddenly fired up to buy a drone myself a few months back but like Robert455 mentioned after researching a little, reading about all the idiots misusing them, and the general public perception of them I guess I lost interest. I have 10 acres out in the middle of nowhere but I started thinking about how I'd feel if my neighbor bought one and started flying it over my place. I just decided against it, it'd probably end up just like all my other toys anyway where I play with 'em for a month and then afterwards they just sit around taking up valuable space. Sold my snowmobile last summer after it sat around for a couple winters, so far haven't missed it at all. I'm goin' minimalist and I like it a lot!

[jgf]

Remember the original military use of drones? They were targets. Which is how I will view any flying over my property uninvited.

[mrzippy]

Oh, crap! Do I have to register my little fly-in-the-house helicopter??:confused:;) Maybe a couple of good, solid rocks or the trusty shotgun should put an end to the snoopy drone problem.

[dbauder]

Oh, crap! Do I have to register my little fly-in-the-house helicopter??:confused:;) Maybe a couple of good, solid rocks or the trusty shotgun should put an end to the snoopy drone problem.

 

If you fly it in the kitchen, your wife might shoot it down...

[mrzippy]

If you fly it in the kitchen, your wife might shoot it down...

 

Wife? What wife? Oh, crap! I've left my wife on the bus.....she's gone now! Whew! :p

[data65]

I agree that drones can be dangerous and have the potential to be used to snoop,spy,eavesdrop ect.. but I kind of view them like guns. Guns are only really dangerous in the hands of people who are inexperienced or who are out to do no good. Yes accidents happen but accidents happen with everything. Life is not completely safe and I feel that we have become risk averse in the last couple of decades. We CANNOT sterilize ourselves to the point where we are safe but static.

On the certificate that you get are clearly listed rules:

 

Safety guidelines for flying your unmanned aircraft:

 

Fly below 400 feet

Never fly near other aircraft

Keep your UAS within visual line of sight

Keep away from emergency responders

 

 

 

Never fly over stadiums, sports events or groups of people

Never fly under the influence of drugs or alcohol

Never fly within 5 miles of an airport without first contacting air traffic control and airport authorities

 

Seems pretty clear to me . I do agree however that some form of training should be required if you are using your drone for commercial purposes. Ok enough lol I've rambled too long. Just remember that people have been flying model aircraft for a long time and there have been fatal accidents with them. Life is risk.

[jgf]

With radio controlled aircraft people aren't flying them around the neighborhood, typically they gather on the weekend at a large parking lot or other open space for an afternoon. But compared to these drones radio controlled aircraft are a minor hobby; people with no interest in airplanes or flying want a drone. Why? (rhetorical question)

 

The smaller drones are little more than toys and most have neither the range, payload, nor altitude to be serious threats. But the larger ones, such as being considered by Amazon for package delivery, must have a lift capacity of a couple of pounds or more to be useful. Do you know what a pound of C4 can do? ...a pound of C4 in a radio controlled aerial vehicle with real time video feedback, which anyone can buy? Or perhaps a couple of aerosol cans of a biological or chemical agent flown somewhere and released. At the very least there is the privacy issue, whenever you see a drone you know there is an airborne camera.

 

It is interesting that the government is so interested in all our phone calls, web searches, library checkouts, etc., but has remained quiet about something which can give every individual the capacity to own their own radio controlled bomb.

 

I am no doomsday prophet, nor a survivalist, nor a conspiracy theorist, but i look at this issue from a practical standpoint - what valid reason would anyone have for owning a drone? Registration and regulations are a panacea for the public, I predict within a year at least half of the drones purchased will be yard sale fodder, every pawn shop will have a few, you might even find them in Goodwill stores. Now how do you know who has them and what they will be doing with them?

[ScatterbrainKid]

In my r/c plane flying days some years ago we all had to make sure there were no other r/c flyers around who were flying on the same frequency (I think there were about 6 frequencies available) otherwise we'd jam each other up and crash.

I don't know if the same thing applies to drones, but if it does I envisage small "jammers" being put on sale to the public so that anybody who's fed up with drones can "shoot them down" by turning a dial to match the same frequency that a drone is using.

 

PS- this TV company drone recently crashed and almost clobbered a skier, dunno what brought it down-

https://youtu.be/VZdxvD4y44o

[jgf]

.... I envisage small "jammers" ...

 

Lol, I wasn't going to mention such (as an engineer it is often better to remain silent), but any electronics enthusiast can rig a jammer quite easily - white noise on the carrier frequency to mask control pulses, it only requires a few watts of power to locally blank the broadcast (the PCM codes do not matter, just wash out the carrier with more power so the receiver gets your signal, not the operator's). Note: any jamming of any public spectrum is technically illegal.

 

Info on frequencies is easily available, such as http://www.digikey.com/en/articles/techzone/2015/jan/rf-links-for-civilian-drones

[PhantomTweak]

I don't know how, exactly, (kinda sad for a long time radar tech with a BSEE...) but the F-4 radios would jam the heck out of the model airplane controllers used at Iwakuni, Japan Marine Airbase. Any time a plane came to the end of the runway where the models were flying every one would land ASAP. A few didn't and wound up flying out to sea someplace.

Personally I think the people who gave permission for the models to fly there knew what freq's the Phantoms were on, and assigned the models that freq just as a cruel joke. It worked too :D

Jamming is inadvertant sometimes. Just a note to the pilots who have a problem with drones in their area. Maybe tune their second Comm radio to the right freq and just take them away from the controllers :D Sneaky, but awdully effective.

Won't be long till they see/hear a plane coming, and they all get DOWN before they loose their toys, thus clearing the way for the planes to fly safely.

Have fun, and a great holiday to all!

Pat☺

[Guest Robert455]

Most of the drones and the new radios for regular R/C are almost all spread spectrum so one pilot won't step on another. There aren't frequencies per se any more and by hopping around between lots of frequencies, they are hard to jam. You need a broad spectrum transmitter to knock them down but that puts jammers square in the sights of the FCC for committing another offense - intentionally disrupting radio communications and that has fines of $10,000 per day IIRC. But it can have other effects as well. The DJI series in particular had a nasty habit of running away. Some think it was radio interference but I found lots of solder bits and wire trimmings in mine. Might have just been control circuits getting shorted. At any rate, they would come out of the sky uncontrolled somewhere and some caused damage. If someone does manage to jam a drone and disrupt its flight, there are multiple sharp blades coming down uncontrolled somewhere. If it happens to hit and injure someone, or even something, and the jammer can be found, the jammer will be held responsible and the FAA and FCC both will be after them then.

 

Also, drones aren't a passing fad unless the new FAA registration regs discourage a lot of new pilots. I doubt that will happen, though. They have been around for years already. They just didn't attract attention since they took more skill to fly, had to be built from parts, and were more expensive. The general public hadn't gotten involved and the people flying them were generally much more responsible and safe. That's what is new about the drone hobby - the commercialization and mass production that allowed them into the hands of anyone with the money to buy one. No skill at all is needed now to build or fly one. The technology has progressed that far and that is what led to the commercialization and mass production, and all the incidents that have forced the FAA's hand in making model aircraft now be registered.

 

Hopefully what does happen is that the FAA regs convince the idiots out there that they need to wake up and fly responsibly. They probably won't convince all of them, though, but after a few get caught without registration and get fined the possible $27,500, maybe they will see this is serious and a Federal offense on their record won't be good even if the fine gets reduced.