Where can I actually fly my drone???

[Emmons1983]

Hey guys, first post here. Im a little frustrated because it feels like I literally have to be on a boat in the middle of the ocean in order to fly my drone legally. I was in Maui a couple weeks ago and discovered that you can't fly a drone in any on the National Parks. I live in the Detroit area, and looking at the b4ufly app it looks like the entire East side of the state is a no fly zone due to airports/helipads. Took my drone to a Metropark today and the Rangers came by with their new drone policy that prohibits flying them in any St Clair Metropark. I've been sitting at this picnic table for the past hour while a pavilion 400ft away is blasting top 40 music with a DJ, but somehow that's allowed here and flying a drone isn't.

So... My questions is this: do you think eventually they will make owning a drone pointless because they will regulate everywhere you could fly one (can't fly in urban areas due to privacy/danger of drone falling, can't fly in any parks, can't fly near helipads (which every hospital/news station has). Also, where do you guys fly?

 

[captainmilehigh]

First of all, welcome to the Forum. Don't get discouraged on places to fly. I'm sure there are many Phantom Pilots in the Detroit area that can chime in with great places to fly. Detroit is a large Class B airspace, and will be difficult, but not impossible to find a good area to fly. The park you mentioned is near a National Guard air base, so that's not the prime area you want anyway. Do not depend fully on the B4youfly app. It is a bit overdone. Don't give up.

Ok Detroit Phantom pilots.........help this guy out. [emoji106]


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[ROD PAINTER]

I fly from my front porch. I downloaded the app b4ufly and I think it is BS. Come on, a private heliport 1.2 miles away. I wont do the last update onDJI GO or firmware which contains the nfz.

 

[jason]

Hey guys, first post here. Im a little frustrated because it feels like I literally have to be on a boat in the middle of the ocean in order to fly my drone legally. I was in Maui a couple weeks ago and discovered that you can't fly a drone in any on the National Parks. I live in the Detroit area, and looking at the b4ufly app it looks like the entire East side of the state is a no fly zone due to airports/helipads. Took my drone to a Metropark today and the Rangers came by with their new drone policy that prohibits flying them in any St Clair Metropark. I've been sitting at this picnic table for the past hour while a pavilion 400ft away is blasting top 40 music with a DJ, but somehow that's allowed here and flying a drone isn't.

So... My questions is this: do you think eventually they will make owning a drone pointless because they will regulate everywhere you could fly one (can't fly in urban areas due to privacy/danger of drone falling, can't fly in any parks, can't fly near helipads (which every hospital/news station has). Also, where do you guys fly?

All Metro Parks are off limits but all state parks are open to fly in just use common sense.

 

[DrDrone413]

This link was posted on another thread by captainmilehigh. I have found it very useful. Seems pretty reliable.

www.dji.com/mobile/flysafe/geo-system/unlock.

 

[Emmons1983]

Thanks, guys. It's just frustrating how it's legal to set off fireworks, ride a jet-ski, fly a kite, and do so many other activities that are less disruptive or dangerous than piloting a drone but there's this building hysteria around drones.

 

[Emmons1983]

This link was posted on another thread by captainmilehigh. I have found it very useful. Seems pretty reliable.

www.dji.com/mobile/flysafe/geo-system/unlock.

Thanks, DrDrone. I had my iPad tethered to my phone so I was able to unlock the zone at the park, but this is a useful link if I ever plan on flying somewhere without a signal.

 

[Emmons1983]

First of all, welcome to the Forum. Don't get discouraged on places to fly. I'm sure there are many Phantom Pilots in the Detroit area that can chime in with great places to fly. Detroit is a large Class B airspace, and will be difficult, but not impossible to find a good area to fly. The park you mentioned is near a National Guard air base, so that's not the prime area you want anyway. Do not depend fully on the B4youfly app. It is a bit overdone. Don't give up.

Ok Detroit Phantom pilots.........help this guy out. [emoji106]


Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots mobile app

Thanks, Captainmilehigh! I saw on the b4ufly app that the park I was in is a Class D airspace. I'm not familiar with the different classes but I'll have to google them soon.

 

[Paul Schulze]

If you can't fly over private property, and you can't fly over National and state forests and Parks, that doesn't leave many places to fly.

Besides RC own areas, I would appreciate someone telling the readers what regions and/or areas one can legally fly a drone in the U.S.

It almost seems as if a private citizen cannot fly a drone specially if it has a camera anywhere but on your own property. This will not require much of a drone if your yard is not very large and even then your neighbors may have privacy objections as well as noise nuisance complaints.

What good does it do to have an expensive flying photography platform unless you want to risk having it confiscated?

 

[Ajax]

Most areas along the eastern seaboard are off limits to quad coppers ( particularly from the mid-Atlantic region upward) while the western states have more wide open spaces and sparser populations. Some areas have really tight restrictions (northern Virginia) while others NM, TX, AZ, UT etc have much looser restrictions.


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[KennyJr]

It almost seems as if a private citizen cannot fly a drone specially if it has a camera anywhere but on your own property. This will not require much of a drone if your yard is not very large and even then your neighbors may have privacy objections as well as noise nuisance complaints.

I agree. If I wanted to spy I have a DSLR and a 70-300mm zoom lens that would do a better job than the Phantom. My lawn mower and gas weed trimmer make a lot more noise than the Phantom. I doubt you can even hear my Phantom/mower/trimmer over the neighbors music.

 

[Paul Schulze]

There is still the problem of private land. Most is owned by somebody and those somebodies are usually wary of someone flying drones over their property for privacy reasons. I guess the worst scenario would be to fly over someone's illegal marijuana field. To sum it up, the best thing to do would be to get the landowners permission to fly.

 

[Paul Schulze]

I agree. If I wanted to spy I have a DSLR and a 70-300mm zoom lens that would do a better job than the Phantom. My lawn mower and gas weed trimmer make a lot more noise than the Phantom. I doubt you can even hear my Phantom/mower/trimmer over the neighbors music.

Yes, but they have those same things available to them and so they generally do not have a problem with those items. Some people like to skinny dip in their spa or pool and the drone represents a known nuisance whereas the DSLR is sleuth. They are not bothered by what they don't know.

 

[Klnyc]

I agree. If I wanted to spy I have a DSLR and a 70-300mm zoom lens that would do a better job than the Phantom. My lawn mower and gas weed trimmer make a lot more noise than the Phantom. I doubt you can even hear my Phantom/mower/trimmer over the neighbors music.

I agreed... I have 120-400 lens is 100x better optic than than my pos Dji camera.

 

[KennyJr]

Yes, but they have those same things available to them and so they generally do not have a problem with those items. Some people like to skinny dip in their spa or pool and the drone represents a known nuisance whereas the DSLR is sleuth. They are not bothered by what they don't know.

The drone would be absolutely useless for spying on skinny dipping neighbors. First, to actually see something you'd have to be close enough that they couldn't help but see it, hear, it and likely feel the prop wash. Second if I took it up high enough they couldn't hear it they'd be nothing more than a few pixels on the screen.

 

[Paul Schulze]

The problem is in the minds of your neighbors and the public in that they have no idea what you can and can't see/photograph. If they don't understand drones, they will believe the drone is spying on them.

We need a lobby and/or, better yet, a way to educate the public and legistrators or we are going to loose to ignorance.

 

[Helihover]

Who says you can't fly over private property?

Flying over private property is fine as long as your not flying over a crowd of people. The property owner does not own the air above their house, no one does. That air, NAS, is regulated by the FAA however.

We will eventually find one or several of these scenarios playing out in court soon. A home owner is going to try and sue or prosecute the drone operator. As mentioned above, this is fueled from ignorance and fear. What the home owner really needs to fear is the capability of a police or news heli. It might take a few years to get the ignorant on board, but time will show. Just wait till the local police departments embrace the drone

 

[Paul Schulze]

Who says you can't fly over private property?

Flying over private property is fine as long as your not flying over a crowd of people. The property owner does not own the air above their house, no one does. That air, NAS, is regulated by the FAA however.

We will eventually find one or several of these scenarios playing out in court soon. A home owner is going to try and sue or prosecute the drone operator. As mentioned above, this is fueled from ignorance and fear. What the home owner really needs to fear is the capability of a police or news heli. It might take a few years to get the ignorant on board, but time will show. Just wait till the local police departments embrace the drone

You are somewhat correct in your first statement, but read this article and the Boggs v. Merideth within.. (Navigable Airspace: Where Private Property Rights End and …). Unless this is settled at higher courts, judges may cite this case in going with the land owner's right to shoot your drone out of the sky.

Let's hope that the plaintiff in the Boggs v. Merideth case gets relief as then we will know for sure that we within our rights to fly over private property which is the way the FAA has set the regions of airspace.

Can State and Local Governments Regulate the Use of Drones …

Congress to City and States: You Can't Say No to Drones | Business ...

 

[LuvMyTJ]

You are somewhat correct in your first statement, but read this article and the Boggs v. Merideth within.. (Navigable Airspace: Where Private Property Rights End and …). Unless this is settled at higher courts, judges may cite this case in going with the land owner's right to shoot your drone out of the sky.

Let's hope that the plaintiff in the Boggs v. Merideth case gets relief as then we will know for sure that we within our rights to fly over private property which is the way the FAA has set the regions of airspace.

Can State and Local Governments Regulate the Use of Drones …

Congress to City and States: You Can't Say No to Drones | Business ...

The judge in that case is obviously biased. There is a federal law that prohibits shooting at aircraft and since the gov. deemed all RC flying machines "aircrafts" (same reason we have to register them) he should of been charged with a federal crime too.

Even if you’re bothered by that drone over your house, you can’t shoot it down

Can I Shoot Down My Neighbor's Drone?

Is it OK to shoot down a drone over your house? - CNN.com

Judge rules man had right to shoot down drone over his house

While town/cities can regulate what happens on the ground like prohibiting takeoff and landings, they cannot make rules for the air, only the FAA can do that. Same with national parks, they can control what happens on their terra firma boundaries the air is the FAA's domain.

 

[Spooky Maxwell]

Hey guys, first post here. Im a little frustrated because it feels like I literally have to be on a boat in the middle of the ocean in order to fly my drone legally. I was in Maui a couple weeks ago and discovered that you can't fly a drone in any on the National Parks. I live in the Detroit area, and looking at the b4ufly app it looks like the entire East side of the state is a no fly zone due to airports/helipads. Took my drone to a Metropark today and the Rangers came by with their new drone policy that prohibits flying them in any St Clair Metropark. I've been sitting at this picnic table for the past hour while a pavilion 400ft away is blasting top 40 music with a DJ, but somehow that's allowed here and flying a drone isn't.

So... My questions is this: do you think eventually they will make owning a drone pointless because they will regulate everywhere you could fly one (can't fly in urban areas due to privacy/danger of drone falling, can't fly in any parks, can't fly near helipads (which every hospital/news station has). Also, where do you guys fly?

Don't use the B4Ufly app. It is ridiculous. You can't fly anywhere if you pay attention to that. There are other apps that are more realistic. DJI actually program their drones so that you can't fly in forbidden areas anyway.