Small drone nearly collides with airliner

[jimre]

And so it starts:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/todayinth ... h/8904829/

Better enjoy our Phantoms while we still can...

 

[Pull_Up]

The FAA wasn't able to identify either the drone, which had a piston engine and resembled an F-4 Phantom jet...

For an aircrew to even see it, let alone identify its type, it must have been a larger scale model aircraft... since when have RC planes been referred to as "drones"? Is that an American media thing, or is it how the wider public would refer to model aircraft?

 

[Geoelectro]

The media here seems to think any flying device with a camera is a drone. They seem to tie it to privacy issues and of course safety issues. It could be a heli but with a camera it's now a drone. A local sheriff dept. lost a drone in a nearby lake while training on it. I believe is was in the 10's of thousands in cost. Well they finally fished it out and it looked like a helicopter. It had infared sensing and a camera.

We had a whole week of drone stories by one station that was fairly balanced explaining their capabilities and the lack of regulations etc. We have another local group called equasearch (sp?) that uses an RC plane equipped with a camera to search for missing people. It has successfully been a key factor in finding about 11 people so far. Now the FAA has demanded they not use it without a special permit. Equasearch says the time it takes to secure a permit is time they could be looking for the missing. They were told if they fly it again without the special permit they will be arrested. It's not a permit you get and renew every year, it is a one time use only meaning they have to request it for every search. I believe the public is sympathetic to the group rather than the FAA on this one.

If it flies, and has a camera, then someone must be spying on us and it should be stopped! :roll:

Geo

 

[jimre]

For an aircrew to even see it, let alone identify its type, it must have been a larger scale model aircraft... since when have RC planes been referred to as "drones"? Is that an American media thing, or is it how the wider public would refer to model aircraft?

Unfortunately, "drone" is pretty much the universal name for all unmanned aircraft now. More so if they have a) a camera, or b) weapons. Sorry, but "UAS", "UAV", or "RC Model Aircraft" just don't cut it for single-syllable, catch-phrase media hype.

 

[Jeff_S]

This event made CNN. It was an RC airplane modeled after a Phantom jet at an altitude of 2,300 feet.

It's really not an issue related to the "drone" that we all enjoy, however it shows unmanned craft are a hot issue.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/09/travel/un ... ?hpt=hp_t2

 

[RCRookie]

There has been 2 UAV stories in the news, over 2 days. A phantom flew into a downtown building in St Louis Mo. on Thursday.

People need to use a little common sense... Which is in short supply in the USA unfortunately.

 

[dastagg]

I am currently involved in a project at my work (chemical plant) taking overhead photos of the process units for Emergency Response planning. Since we have a huge amount of pipelines in my area of the country, companies use low flying planes flying often checking the pipelines. Since I know we are flying my Phantom in the 500-800 foot, and planes legally permitted to fly in the 200 foot elevation for pipeline flying only, I am calling my local airport and give them my flight plans and local aircraft are warned during this activity. I also have two people spotting the sky also just in case. I realize this isn't practical for most individuals, but for this usage, it keeps everyone more comfortable. I simply call the airport tower when finished for the day. Them low flying planes scare me when flying my Phantom. We have a lot of mosquito control planes that fly also very low to spray, but that is early and late in the day only.

 

[Visioneer]

... since when have RC planes been referred to as "drones"? Is that an American media thing, or is it how the wider public would refer to model aircraft?

The dictionary has done us in:

Merriam-Webster (An Encyclopaedia Britannica Company)

drone noun \ˈdrōn\
Definition of DRONE

1: a stingless male bee (as of the honeybee) that has the role of mating with the queen and does not gather nectar or pollen
2: one that lives on the labors of others : parasite
3: an unmanned aircraft or ship guided by remote control or onboard computers

Traditionally model aircraft in the US have been referred to simply as model planes, "RC models" in the case of radio controlled. RC Modeler magazine was THE source for the hobby for years and years (gone now, folded when its founder & tech director passed away).

The advent of military drones, which aren't "models" of any manned planes, probably started the wide use of the term drone. As multicopters are also not really models of any manned aircraft (other than perhaps some experimentals), and come in a variety of configurations, "drone" was a handy term to cover them all. And, as a previous post points out, it's a simple, one syllable descriptor which, given the notoriety of military drones, makes for "good" press. And now the media's wide use of the term has implanted it in the brains of the masses who typically only digest the "sound bites" of a story.

 

[RCRookie]

The FAA wasn't able to identify either the drone, which had a piston engine and resembled an F-4 Phantom jet...

For an aircrew to even see it, let alone identify its type, it must have been a larger scale model aircraft... since when have RC planes been referred to as "drones"? Is that an American media thing, or is it how the wider public would refer to model aircraft?

Yes Pull_Up..It is a US Media thing...the MSM will likely take a negative view point. That's our Press. They get to flavor the opinion first...so as to set the agenda.