Drones Flying at EGGtoberfest

That's a Phantom.  Those things are fun.

I think that the park is a no fly zone.   The FAA is regulating the flight areas of these things nowadays.    I believe they had one crash into the stadium at  Kentucky football game earlier this year.   

tarheelmatt said:

Ahh.. well I think when flying over people they have landed on heads of folks.  Guess a liability issue.  

Another good reason for people to carry insurance if they're a photographer/videographer.  

If you are doing it professionally then you actually need a special airworthiness certificate from the FAA. I'm assuming this includes photography if you are getting paid for it. http://www.faa.gov/uas/faq/#qn4

KiterTodd said:

Very cool, thanks for sharing.  As I've never been to an eggfest, let alone what looks like a big one.  It was cool to see all those eggs and tents set up.

People are way too paranoid of drones these days....

Not paranoid, but I dont want some fool flying something over my head that anyone can buy at Best Buy.     And don't fly one over my house........

I get that its cool to be able to take the photo and video from up in the air, but there is also a responsibility that comes along with it.

Yeah...they look harmless enough but they really shouldn't be flying them over a crowded area.  If they loose power they will drop like a rock.  Most of them are light enough that they won't cause serious damage but it could leave a nice bump on the head (or a nice ding in a sixty-something Camaro).  

I told my daughter, Eggs and drones are taking over the world. 

Further proof

Thanks for the post anyway. I was not aware they were that noisy! You could tell when people heard it overhead and looked up or pointed at it. I thought there was more stealth involved. Peeking over the fence at the neighbor's hot wife sunbathing isn't going un-noticed that's for sure! 

DaveRichardson said:

Stone Mountain is a no drone zone.  They call it a safety reason for other park-goers.

A local TV station here in Atlanta has been licensed by the FAA to use a drone for reporting.  They have to have an FAA Licensed Pilot to fly it, a spotter to watch it, and a videographer to control the video.  So 3 people to operate a device......  cost CRAZY!!!!!

Dude, that's nothing compared the cost to operate a real helicopter.  When I flew for Fox, CBS, and NBC it cost them about $800/hr for the helicopter and pilot.  They supplied the cameraman and I can't remember if they owned the camera on the helicopter of if it was part of the lease.

7-8 yrs ago we launched on EVERYTHING--if someone had a flat tire during rush hour, we were getting footage.  When the economy crashed, it took mass disaster before they would call me in on a weekend.  That's about when I gave up that job.

As far as the drones go, those things scared the hell out of me when I worked as a pilot.  I can't imagine what it's like now.  Whether I was flying for the news, or I was in the air ambulance, we all had a good working relationship (including the police).  We kept out of each others way and respected who had priority.  That's never going to happen with the drones.

And yes a drone can take out a helicopter--depends on where it hits.  A kite can take out a helicopter.  Anyone in STL knows Forest Park and there's a HUGE hospital complex right next to it.  Whether I was landing on top of Barnes, Children's, or at the FOX2 pad, the kites were something we had to be very vigilant of.  There was signs all over the park telling people to keep them below 200ft, but none of those people measured or cared.  Get that string wrapped around the mast a hundred times over the matter of seconds and it will collapse the pitch links or jam the swash plate--and then you're dead.

The FAA is scrambling to figure out what the hell they're going to do on this.  And the "no fly zones" are not really enforceable at this point unless it's a sporting event, presidential, etc.  The FAA has a tough time going after anyone that doesn't have a pilot certificate either.  Civil penalties, yes, and they are really going to be hitting it hard to make an example out of these people--just like with the lasers (still got lit up frequently though.)

onedbguru said:

I flew RC aircraft for a number of years.  Everyone abided by self-regulated rules.  #1 was never fly over people. Ever.
 
That being said, these things are NOT big enough to take out a plane.  It would be less damage than a plane  (speaking of a commercial jet) hitting a bird.  it will come apart a lot easier than a bird and do far less damage, but not enough damage to cause a crash.

It's not going to take out a passenger jet......or anything that would require a type rating.  That's like a train vs. a car.

But they could do a lot of damage to a small passenger aircraft (airplane or helicopter) doing 100+ knots.  I wore a helmet visor down all the time, 99.9% of pilots don't.  A bird coming through the plexiglass windscreen can knock the pilot out and it's happened.  Plenty of other susceptible places it could hit.  Look at what a 100# deer will do to a 8000# SUV at 60 MPH.  Simple math on the damage these things can do. 

I have drone built by Yuneec. It has a GPS map of no fly zones programmed into the drone. You can't fly into those zones and you can't take off from inside those zones. It's mostly larger airports and military bases. It's also set from the factory to not fly higher than 300 feet. There are ways to get past both those features if you really wanted to, but I have no need.

I was flying the drone over my property a couple of weeks ago and I was under 200 feet taking pictures of the house. I hear this low hum coming from behind me and there's a private plane flying LOW over the trees headed right for me. I started dropping the altitude and I see the plane veer off. I was surprised how quiet this plane was. He circled all the way around and then flew right past me a second time. By then I had the drone on the ground. He looked to be almost the same altitude as the drone was. I assume he saw it and that's why he changed direction. But if he saw it in the air, then why would he circle around and fly right by where he saw it? I'd have avoided the area if I were the pilot.

@Toxarch - I bet he was getting a GPS fix on your location to report you having a drone close to him.  Expect a phone call from the FAA in 6-8 months......

THEBuckeye said:

@stlcharcoal

Did you fly helo's in the Navy?

Nope, all civilian.....20 yrs of it.  Ten years of air ambulance, five of electronic news gathering / traffic watch, and five of powerline/pipeline patrol, instruction, aerial photography, & tours.  Needed some more excitement, so I gave it up for charcoal.