There's a common joke among us multicopter pilots about DJI Phantom owners.<p>The majority (by quite a large margin) of these 'close calls' are caused by regular Joes buying a $1000 DJI Phantom and running it with the throttle all the way open to see how high they can go.<p>Sure, it makes for a cool shot with the camera, but it's wayyyyy far outside of the AMA and FAA guidelines of 400' altitude ceiling.<p>Personally, I'm glad that the FAA is documenting it. I just hope that the incredibly daft actions of a few don't ruin it for the rest of us.
Given that aircraft fly faster (in the case of large aircraft, a lot faster) than these drones, the article's choice of words that makes it sound like the drones "buzz" aircraft seems pretty misleading. It's the aircraft that fly into the drones, not the other way around.<p>The real issue isn't what the drones <i>do</i>, it's that they're around at all, because the speeds and sizes involved makes it very difficult to see and avoid them whatever they do. In that sense, they're not that different from birds.<p>There sure are a lot more birds than drones, but on the other hand I'm not sure what the relative effect on a small aircraft from the impact of a (relatively soft) bird versus a (hard) drone is.
At the Hayward shoreline a few weeks back, a guy was using a drone. I ignored him until he buzzed the area where Snowy Plovers (an Endangered Species) hang out. Then I went over to talk to him.<p>He was very contrite. Apparently his model has a special light that is supposed to light up in a "no fly zone." I don't know what that means, but he was in a Wildlife Refuge, directly under the flightpath for Oakland International (exactly 5 miles from the landing strip) and less than 2 miles from Hayward airport [1].<p>Maybe the FAA needs to publish maps for drone guys to show them where it <i>is</i> legal. Or maybe someone should start a Wiki showing legal and interesting place to use drones as a way of diverting drone users away from silly places while raising awareness of where not to go.<p>[1] 37.645292 -122.155191
I think it's good that the FAA is documenting close calls with drones, however the press is a little overblown. This long time pilot views drones less of threat then geese or other large birds. That may change if drones get bigger and heavier, but all things point to drones getting smaller.<p>A pilot's view on drones:
<a href="https://jethead.wordpress.com/2015/08/08/airliners-vs-drones-calm-down/" rel="nofollow">https://jethead.wordpress.com/2015/08/08/airliners-vs-drones...</a>
So what happens when someone(s) decide to automate a drone protest over a runway. Just set it and forget it. They fly till they drop and block airspace by just flying 100 ft above a runway and fly back and forth. They would be able to shut down an airport. That's what.<p>Kinda like these folks who shit down a river. But there's no one to arrest.<p><a href="http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2015/08/greenpeace_protester_was_surpr.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2015/08/greenpe...</a>
While drones colliding with aircraft is not a good thing, aren't most aircraft rated for bird strikes? It seems like most hobby level drones are approximately the same size and weight.
This and the drone operators that like to fly at Cars&Coffee events.<p>Yes, it's a great idea to fly a drone around lots of expensive cars and people without insurance, skill or experience.<p>/sarcasm
<i>Schumer pledged to introduce legislation requiring manufacturers to install technology on all drones to prevent them from flying above 500 feet, near airports or in sensitive airspace. Such technology, known as geo-
fencing, relies on satellite navigation to pinpoint a drone’s location</i><p>Completely unrealistic. Such measures would be easily defeated and many hobbyist drone-builders would just omit them in the first place.
> Aviation-safety experts say that even tiny drones could trigger a disaster by crashing into a propeller or windshield, or getting sucked into a jet engine.<p>Does it mean that birds could also cause a similar disaster?
Interesting that a story disparaging of drones is being written in a newspaper owned by the biggest commercial proponent of the technology. What am I missing?