I think there is one answer missing in the poll:

6. Depends who's asking

DocAraxá Posted at 2018-2-1 02:50
What a beautiful place!

Yes it was beautiful there. I wasn't even intending to film there. The plan was to drive all the way up to Courtright Resevoir, but I didn't even bother to check to see if it was possible to drive there. When I got to the turn, there was a locked gate blocking traffic. I parked and walked to the bridge. While I was filming, someone stopped to ask questions about the drone and told me about the other bridge.

Does line of site mean you must be able to se it or you can see it. Line of site in ratio terms means it is a straight line with nothing in-between. It does not mean you can actually see the object

Voted Always, but then again, I've got a mere 4000 meters flown yet and already got nerves when it's 100 meters out

Always in countries with a clear VLOS restictions. ex.350m. At clear days I was able to spot my Mavic and my P3 over 450m, but for the Spark only up to 200m.

eYeSkYeYe Posted at 2018-2-3 10:54
I think there is one answer missing in the poll:

6. Depends who's asking

Good point of view!

Can of worms, if your a good pilot and urban exploring a derelict house you may not see the drone yet it's only 30 meters away.

But because your such a good pilot your exploring rooms etc and are out of site obviously.

Like titanic and those deep explorers.

They used to hang people in the UK once.  They don't now.  Can of worms, fly safe and fly free.

In my domicile we have a 'Drone Code' set by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), I think it's a pretty common set of guidelines including having a AGL of no more than 120M or 400ft. Now there's always a degree of interpretation as we are dealing with a protocol that has numerous dynamic variables - one of which is 'Line Of Sight' operation. Legally speaking, the only interpretive aspect of this is if it actually stipulates the craft has to be visible along that line of sight. Line of sight just means a direct unobstructed vector from the pilot's eyes to the drone. As I say this is a variable not limited to a specific measurable distance, unlike the flight ceiling set relative to AGL. The critical aspect of all of this is that 'it is your responsibility to fly safe and within the guide lines'. Much like driving a car - one of the world's most dangerous machines - it is always the driver's responsibility to drive within the law but also with due care and attention.

Lamplighter55 Posted at 2018-2-15 10:03
In my domicile we have a 'Drone Code' set by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), I think it's a pretty common set of guidelines including having a AGL of no more than 120M or 400ft. Now there's always a degree of interpretation as we are dealing with a protocol that has numerous dynamic variables - one of which is 'Line Of Sight' operation. Legally speaking, the only interpretive aspect of this is if it actually stipulates the craft has to be visible along that line of sight. Line of sight just means a direct unobstructed vector from the pilot's eyes to the drone. As I say this is a variable not limited to a specific measurable distance, unlike the flight ceiling set relative to AGL. The critical aspect of all of this is that 'it is your responsibility to fly safe and within the guide lines'. Much like driving a car - one of the world's most dangerous machines - it is always the driver's responsibility to drive within the law but also with due care and attention.

In the UK, the first statement of the Drone Code is in fact “Always keep your drone in sight”, much more restrictive.

I believe that most of us our eyes are focused on the screen as opposed to looking at the drone. To be honest, when i fly i pay attention to my subject rather than line of sight. Secondly, i am focused on my distance, height, battery levels and any alerts which may appear.

dwainwayne28 Posted at 2018-2-15 13:56
I believe that most of us our eyes are focused on the screen as opposed to looking at the drone. To be honest, when i fly i pay attention to my subject rather than line of sight. Secondly, i am focused on my distance, height, battery levels and any alerts which may appear.

Very honest reply!
Congrats!

I always do. Even after a year of flying it I am terrified of losing it.

Always!

I always have line of sight to my phone.......

Tadango Posted at 2018-2-16 11:59
I always have line of sight to my phone.......

This is absolutely true...for everyone!

Always LOS. Don't like RTH.

Of course I do.  I also always drive below the speed limit and come to a full stop at all stop signs.

To be honest, I have a better idea where my drone is by looking at the screen.  At 71, my eyes aren't that sharp. I easily loose visual contact. Even the direction the sound is coming from can be deceptive.

I don't know if I can actually fly my Mavic Air beyond LOS. It loses video transmission

You could discuss what LOS means!
In radio transmission LOS means that the radio signal is in a straight line.
So, over seas, you can fly 16km and still be in LOS.

I always keep my Blizzard in visual range.

I'm surprised at the percentage of people who fly out of sight.

StanfordWebbie Posted at 2018-2-20 07:55
I'm surprised at the percentage of people who fly out of sight.

Those are the Honest Ones...
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b4/Sting.ogg

I will keep my eye on the aircraft even shooting video. I can go much closer to the object and do complicated movement be watch the aircraft. Specially on complicated environment. Watch on screen only can do simple shoot far away from above.

mostly i bring it up to about 100m and by then its just a speck if its any further than 200m away.

I use the drone to inspect stuff on the farm so yes, almost every flight ends at between 3 and 4 km away from me. Don't see why its an issue, you do have a high quality almost lag free live video feed...

I fly line of sight literally 100% of the time, and I'm not likely to change (unless I have spotters).

A few weeks back, I was flying in a rural area in the middle of nowhere with not a single person around for miles and no flight restrictions when a shiny red U.S. Coast Guard helicopter came in low over the hills, circled twice, and landed right where I was flying. I about soiled my pants when I saw that larger bird coming straight at me. I threw it into sports mode and did a circular dance around the helicopter trying to avoid it (not sure where it was going as it circled), and landed as fast as I could. If I knew at the time how to do an emergency power shut off, I probably would have done that but I didn't know at the time. All good in the end, but if I was not within visual line of sight, I could well have crashed into that helicopter.
Lesson learned. I fly line of sight unless I've got spotters helping me.

Danger Lampost Posted at 2018-5-20 09:15
I fly line of sight literally 100% of the time, and I'm not likely to change (unless I have spotters).

A few weeks back, I was flying in a rural area in the middle of nowhere with not a single person around for miles and no flight restrictions when a shiny red U.S. Coast Guard helicopter came in low over the hills, circled twice, and landed right where I was flying. I about soiled my pants when I saw that larger bird coming straight at me. I threw it into sports mode and did a circular dance around the helicopter trying to avoid it (not sure where it was going as it circled), and landed as fast as I could. If I knew at the time how to do an emergency power shut off, I probably would have done that but I didn't know at the time. All good in the end, but if I was not within visual line of sight, I could well have crashed into that helicopter.

Very interesting.
Thanks to share your experience with us!

Mavic Ace Posted at 2018-2-19 06:27
Of course I do.  I also always drive below the speed limit and come to a full stop at all stop signs.

This may sound hard to believe, but I always drive at the speed limit and actually do come to full stops at all stop signs. It's such an unusual thing to actually stop at a stop sign that I've been told I could cause an accident.

Guilty!  yes I do fly with drone out of site however the slightest warning and I set the drone for RTH.

So many liars in this thread........

I can see my drone 2000ft away with ease. However I fly 10k ft away quite often. For the record guys...........

Rules are made to be broken

I like film on fly backward. Only can do this safety by watch the aircraft.

Flying line of site means to the FAA that the aircraft is at a height and distance where the operator can see and orentient the aircraft. Just because you can see a spot in the sky does not qualify unless you also have the ability to turn, navigate and fly the aircraft back home with only your eyes or those of your visual observer. The FAA does not require you to have eyes on the aircraft all the time. You can fly legally while looking at your screen as long as you maintain a distance that allows you to look up at the aircraft, figure out your orientation and return to home.  I occasionally practice flying out to a set distance. With the Inspire 2 I can go out to 2200'. At that distance I can spin the aircraft for a random period of time. Then without looking at the screen and only looking at the aircraft, I can reliably figure out what way I am pointing and navigate back. That is my safe VLOS distance for that aircraft for a single operator without a separate VO. Other smaller aircraft need to be operated closer in to be completely legal.

I have flown exactly once BVLOS, and it was over private property (my parents land) where if I hit anything it would be my fault since their land is mostly just trees.  Never over 400' and never over anything or anyone that I'm not willing to hit.  

You can fly the aircraft back when see it as a little spot. Just watch the spot and move it left and right than back and forward. Turn the aircraft a bit until you see the spot not moving on push stick forward and backward but move to opposite direction when push stick left and right. That means aircraft is facing you and able to go forward to return to you.

For small aircraft like MA it’s almost impossible to see over 300 meters on clear sky.  With complicated background you may not see it over 100 meters.

CGPhoto Posted at 2018-5-23 10:46
Flying line of site means to the FAA that the aircraft is at a height and distance where the operator can see and orentient the aircraft. Just because you can see a spot in the sky does not qualify unless you also have the ability to turn, navigate and fly the aircraft back home with only your eyes or those of your visual observer. The FAA does not require you to have eyes on the aircraft all the time. You can fly legally while looking at your screen as long as you maintain a distance that allows you to look up at the aircraft, figure out your orientation and return to home.  I occasionally practice flying out to a set distance. With the Inspire 2 I can go out to 2200'. At that distance I can spin the aircraft for a random period of time. Then without looking at the screen and only looking at the aircraft, I can reliably figure out what way I am pointing and navigate back. That is my safe VLOS distance for that aircraft for a single operator without a separate VO. Other smaller aircraft need to be operated closer in to be completely legal.

Great explanation.
Thanks!

At 200-300ft I practically lose sight of my mavic air.  Only way for me to know where it's at is for me to look at the screen and adjust from there.  However, I never put it behind structures where I wouldn't be able to see it if I absolutely had to.

Bulldog Posted at 2018-5-21 05:32
So many liars in this thread........

I can see my drone 2000ft away with ease. However I fly 10k ft away quite often. For the record guys...........

I can see my drone 2000ft away with ease.  However I fly 10k ft away quite often.

At least you were honest in second part!  

I admit my eyesight is not that of a Hawk.  But it is really easy to loose sight of even Mavic Pro with Hi-Vis Green skin with complex backgrounds.  All it takes is a look down at GO-4 screen to check altitude, speed, battery, direction, etc. or to read a warning / alert to loose sight of moving drone at a distance of 750-feet.  

In remote areas, where it is quiet, you can often hear the little buggar, but you can't spot it.  Maybe its do to delay in speed of sound and Mavic Pro flying so fast.  

It just a very small dot 700 feet away. You blink your eyes and it disappear. Need a clean sky background and look very carefully on right place to see a drone over 700 feet.

yes, unless at a designated field with mass acreage. Our RC field is big, but the land extends well over 2 miles deep. I can't see the drone that far out. Normally, I do not fly more than a mile out when there. Lately I flown more than 2000' feet out. Lucky to get that.

"line of sight" isn't vague in most countries despite what people claim.  The aviation definitions clearly mention what and why it is and the intent of the rule.
Some countries aren't quite as concise but lots are.

The whole purpose of line of sight is for traffic and obstacle avoidance.  It means not only can you see the drone, you can correctly tell its orientation and the important bit, a clear sight all around it to see any potential oncoming traffic.  Its for situational awareness.  A fixed camera on an FPV screen provides no situational awareness.

So if that done is a tiny tiny dot you can just about make out in the distance can you reliably claim you could see any potential ground or air hazard coming at it from out in front or off to the side reliably, accurately and in enough detail to take avoiding action?

Some countries allow visual assistance like binoculars or spotters, some dont and so on but thats what line of sight is intended for aviation law wise.  Its all about situational awareness.