Where can and can't you fly

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Been flying just a couple weeks now haven't had any problems but wondering about legalities of where you can and cannot fly besides the obvious near airports and over cars and people. don't seem to be any definitive widespread laws
 
Been flying just a couple weeks now haven't had any problems but wondering about legalities of where you can and cannot fly besides the obvious near airports and over cars and people. don't seem to be any definitive widespread laws
The FAA paper Sectional chart or an electronic facsimile of it is the only way to understand all of the airspace rules. The vfrmap.com site is awesome. You can toggle between a Google Earth view to orient yourself and then toggle to the VFR Sectional view to check the "real" airspace particulars in your chosen area of flight. Since you are flying for recreation, you can click on any airport that is with-in (5) miles of your intended flying location and it will give you the phone numbers of the Tower, or Airport Manager. On that same page, click at the bottom on TFR's, (Temporary Flight Restrictions), to see if there are any in place near your flight. Always check for TFR's. Busting into one of them will get you in serious trouble.
I recommend buying a paper FAA Sectional from an airport, since it has the complete chart legend to assist you in deciphering it. Quickly, you will know the chart symbology by heart and be able to use vfrmap.com with confidence.
VFRMAP - Digital Aeronautical Charts
 
Been flying just a couple weeks now haven't had any problems but wondering about legalities of where you can and cannot fly besides the obvious near airports and over cars and people. don't seem to be any definitive widespread laws

Some tips...

Check your town or city ordinances, you could usually find them on line, they might indicate any anti-drone laws. Where I live there are several parks that prohibit any type of RC items but few post signage. I go to some parks early in the morning and avoid contact with people if I'm out collecting photos. Stay out of national parks! I try to operate off public roads and avoid clearly marked private property. I also try to stay at least 100' AGL. I find open areas around industrial parks works well. Hope this helps!
 
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Some tips...

Check your town or city ordinances, you could usually find them on line, they might indicate any anti-drone laws. Where I live there are several parks that prohibit any type of RC items but few post signage. I go to some parks early in the mornings and avoid contact with people if I'm out collecting photos. Stay out of national parks! I try to operate off public roads and avoid clearly marked private property. I also try to stay at least 100' AGL. I find open areas around industrial parks works well. Hope this helps!
I second that!
 
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Sorry if this is the wrong place, I'm Canadian but where I live is show on VFRMAPS I'm curious how to interpret the airspace over my house before I buy a Phantom and find I can't fly it in my own yard. If you follow the US Canada border West from Vancouver to the big island there is CYCD regional airport, I live in Chemainus just south of the airport. As far as i can tell I have a big box northwest of town that's ok for drones municipal rules aside? I have an aerobatic, training, and hang gliding area to the south west that I shouldn't fly in? I'm assuming these rules are pretty international seeing as air planes cross borders?
 
Sorry if this is the wrong place, I'm Canadian but where I live is show on VFRMAPS I'm curious how to interpret the airspace over my house before I buy a Phantom and find I can't fly it in my own yard. If you follow the US Canada border West from Vancouver to the big island there is CYCD regional airport, I live in Chemainus just south of the airport. As far as i can tell I have a big box northwest of town that's ok for drones municipal rules aside? I have an aerobatic, training, and hang gliding area to the south west that I shouldn't fly in? I'm assuming these rules are pretty international seeing as air planes cross borders?
Boy, I'll tell you; for as off the beaten path, as your location appears, there is a lot going on there, Airspace wise.
You appear to be correct; you have a box to fly in from about 1 mile SE of Chemanius to about 6 miles NW, (to just before Ladysmith), and West about 6 miles to the peaks of the mountains. Bordering that box to the North is CYCD Class E to the surface, (I believe only when the tower is in operation, but I cannot be sure of Canadian regs), and the blue hatched areas South & West that are a type of Military Operations Area similar to the USA's MOA's. It will be to your advantage to check on those, (CYA118 & CYA 113), in detail since they may not be a factor in your flying for any number of reasons, (might begin way higher up then you will ever be flying or are only intermittent use). But, all of the area in the USA, just West of you with-in those MOA's, may be another story altogether. I just do not know about crossing the border with a drone. My opinion? Save your money and buy something else; that's a tight to non-existent area to work with. That's about the best I can do for you, but feel free to ask questions; maybe I can dig something else up.
 
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Boy, I'll tell you; for as off the beaten path, as your location appears, there is a lot going on there, Airspace wise.
You appear to be correct; you have a box to fly in from about 1 mile SE of Chemanius to about 6 miles NW, (to just before Ladysmith), and West about 6 miles to the peaks of the mountains. Bordering that box to the North is CYCD Class E to the surface, (I believe only when the tower is in operation, but I cannot be sure of Canadian regs), and the blue hatched areas South & West that are a type of Military Operations Area similar to the USA's MOA's. It will be to your advantage to check on those, (CYA118 & CYA 113), in detail since they may not be a factor in your flying for any number of reasons, (might begin way higher up then you will ever be flying or are only intermittent use). But, all of the area in the USA, just West of you with-in those MOA's, may be another story altogether. I just do not know about crossing the border with a drone. My opinion? Save your money and buy something else; that's a tight to non-existent area to work with. That's about the best I can do for you, but feel free to ask questions; maybe I can dig something else up.

Cool, I remembered some of that from cadets and googled the rest but think I get the gist The box you described is exactly what I was hoping for I'd be "training" there because it's hard to get into if you don't have a key or property bordering it. I know the area from the ground dirbiking and it's somewhere I could stay 75m away from everything as per Canadian regs, my testing with sub 250g drones tells me that most wildlife keeps at least that clearance on their own.

What I know from hearsay and 30 years of watching the zones to the south they are training and aerobatic, civilian. You seem to know your stuff so next question the aerobatic pilots always keep well south of me but the training spills out of that area regularly, about once a year a guy goes around not over a particularly tall tree in my yard doing power off stalls or gliding or something. I can and would be flying down in a valley where they would never go with a good view of the approach from both nearby airports the flight school operates. That's cool if I land as soon as I see or hear a possible conflict coming?

I just want to know I have a box I can play in before I were to head out on road trips to all the remote areas where I wouldn't need to worry at all. For what it's worth this is a huge island with lots of incredible scenery that's outside parks or other sorts of no fly zones, I've only seen %75 of it in my 38 years here. The kids are getting older and the wife has always been into selfies on facebook roadtrip dates, though this could be a fun bonding thing we'd both be interested in.
 
Cool, I remembered some of that from cadets and googled the rest but think I get the gist The box you described is exactly what I was hoping for I'd be "training" there because it's hard to get into if you don't have a key or property bordering it. I know the area from the ground dirbiking and it's somewhere I could stay 75m away from everything as per Canadian regs, my testing with sub 250g drones tells me that most wildlife keeps at least that clearance on their own.

What I know from hearsay and 30 years of watching the zones to the south they are training and aerobatic, civilian. You seem to know your stuff so next question the aerobatic pilots always keep well south of me but the training spills out of that area regularly, about once a year a guy goes around not over a particularly tall tree in my yard doing power off stalls or gliding or something. I can and would be flying down in a valley where they would never go with a good view of the approach from both nearby airports the flight school operates. That's cool if I land as soon as I see or hear a possible conflict coming?

I just want to know I have a box I can play in before I were to head out on road trips to all the remote areas where I wouldn't need to worry at all. For what it's worth this is a huge island with lots of incredible scenery that's outside parks or other sorts of no fly zones, I've only seen %75 of it in my 38 years here. The kids are getting older and the wife has always been into selfies on facebook roadtrip dates, though this could be a fun bonding thing we'd both be interested in.
Well, you surely have that 6 mile x 6 mile box North & West of you for starters. That's a lot of remote country, I'm sure you have covered on the dirtbike. If you get CYA 113 & CYA 118 sorted out, that would open you up all the way to Lake Cowichan and beyond. You can fly from Westholme, south to Duncan and on to Cobble HIll, you would still be under the Victoria Class C which starts @ 700 AGL in that area. Don't go East of Cobble Hill though, you would be entering Victoria Class C Control Zone.
As far as the lone aerobatic and/or low level flight, if your rules are anything like ours, (and most of the world has modeled their aviation rules after the FAA's), it's your job to do what ever you have to do, to yield to him.
But don't forget; I know NOTHING about Canadian hobby "drone" rules.
 
Well, you surely have that 6 mile x 6 mile box North & West of you for starters. That's a lot of remote country, I'm sure you have covered on the dirtbike. If you get CYA 113 & CYA 118 sorted out, that would open you up all the way to Lake Cowichan and beyond. You can fly from Westholme, south to Duncan and on to Cobble HIll, you would still be under the Victoria Class C which starts @ 700 AGL in that area. Don't go East of Cobble Hill though, you would be entering Victoria Class C Control Zone.
As far as the lone aerobatic and/or low level flight, if your rules are anything like ours, (and most of the world has modeled their aviation rules after the FAA's), it's your job to do what ever you have to do, to yield to him.
But don't forget; I know NOTHING about Canadian hobby "drone" rules.

Thanks again, the immediate south is "populated" enough I'd stay away anyway and Victoria is the type of place where if it's not quiet, super safe, and "green" it'll be against a municipal bylaw aviation administration NFZs aside.

Canadian drone laws seem pretty prohibitive in a vague all encompassing way so far as I can tell, fortunately anyone who'd know better, see, care, or do anything gets fewer and farther between North or West where I'd want to go after some practice.
 
Thanks again, the immediate south is "populated" enough I'd stay away anyway and Victoria is the type of place where if it's not quiet, super safe, and "green" it'll be against a municipal bylaw aviation administration NFZs aside.

Canadian drone laws seem pretty prohibitive in a vague all encompassing way so far as I can tell, fortunately anyone who'd know better, see, care, or do anything gets fewer and farther between North or West where I'd want to go after some practice.
I know. I lived in Bush Alaska for 13 years, (6) of those in the Arctic, (2) of those,1400 miles out in the Aleutians ). You have room to work there with very little interference.
 
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