I live in Tampa, Florida. Last night we had Game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals. I come home tonight and flip on the local evening news (WFLA Channel 8) and what do I see.......... I see news footage of a Phantom 3 flying directly over the crowd (40- 50ft) outside the Arena where they are having a watch party. They hovered over the crowd with the camera straight down and most likely did a zoom out shot with the P3. They did not say how long the craft was up there, but the news got it on film.
Then the fun begins. The news reporter did not even know what kind of craft he was looking at. Of course they just used the blanket "Drone" word and said that it had a Go-pro linked to the pilot. It was clearly a P3 advanced or professional. You could see the vision positioning system on the underside. They then interviewed an owner of a local UAS aerial photography company. He proceeded to state how dangerous it was. He then proceeded to immediately say that it could have malfunctioned and could have had a fly away event.


While this was possible (Not Probable) he failed to mention the safety features of the P3 in that in case of signal loss it is programmed to return home or land itself at the point of signal loss. Long story short this is yet anoter example of an idiot pilot that will give us and our community a bad name. I can't wait til tonight where they plan to talk to other people about the incident.

IF YOU WERE THE PILOT WHO FLEW OVER AMALIE ARENA LAST NIGHT, PLEASE DO NOT DO IT DURING GAME 2 ON SATURDAY! I MEAN IT. I FIGURE YOU LIVE NEAR HARBOR ISLAND NEXT TO THE ARENA!

Enough Ranting. Have fun and fly safe out there P3 pilots!

What you also fail to realize is that the "Fail Safe" is NOT !  You do know that 'flyaways' are occurring quite often? Phantom crashes that are documented in both the video and the flight logs.  Yes   the idiot that was flying at a venue that had greater than 30k of seating is a violation of FAA rules and will bring a hefty fine and/or a loss of aircraft.  There are just too many STUPID people out there that will ruin it for everyone else.  And you know that you just can't fix stupid. Well, you can....but that will get you convicted of murder which in reality is really a mercy killing.

yea here it is



At least they were using prop guards  LOL

Freakin prop guards!  I could have told you the guy was a moron just from seeing prop guards on it..  In all my years of flying dji products I have never put prop guards on my craft and I have never broken a prop..  Now on my blade 350qx2 I've broken a few but that is because that copter was the biggest pile ever and once something happened where I broke the props I sold it because if it didn't stop obeying my commands it wouldn't have happened ..  

If I had prop guards on my p3 I would be to embarrassed to fly it!

And then the arial photography guy to start bad mouthing copters saying this and that could have happened, your a moron too..  Let's stick to the brass facts here..  Bad things happen because of dumb a$$ pilots most of the time...  Not knowing how the craft operates or flying in places they shouldn't be flying in..  

What is wrong with people?  How do these people think the dumb crap they do was a good idea?  

What is the thought process behind these decisions? Is there one even?

Also if you going to do dumb stuff like this in the night, disable the lights and paint the dam thing black and a black peice of tape over the battery lights.  Not that I want to give people ideas.

At first glance I wouldn't say the pilot being an idiot. Ignorant is the correct word. A big if not even a majority thinks drones are toys and they are allowed to do anything they can (fly over crowds, close to buildings etc). This is most likely because they actually don't know is it legal or not. If you want to know all the airspace rules and stuff, you really have to do a throughout study to learn all the stuff. How many of you have done it? How many of you own aeronautical charts (or have looked at one) of area where you fly? Do you know the flight rules in G and G+ air spaces or CTR and how they apply to UAVs? Are you allowed to fly in controlled air space?

Since I don't have my P3P yet, I've spent some time (hours) to find all the rules which I have to obey. Project still in process because it's not an easy task and I've sent a few questions to local officials to confirm a few things. If you think you can fly anywhere you want you are wrong.

Drones are not toys! Welcome to aviation!

Edited: removed some numbers...

Mark97564 Posted at 2015-6-5 12:06
Freakin prop guards!  I could have told you the guy was a moron just from seeing prop guards on it.. ...

Seriously?  What sort of comment is that?  The guy flew over a crowd (bad) likely in ignorance (bad)  but at least made one mitigating action (the prop guards).  ...and you think he should be embarrassed to fly it because of the guards?  

Incompetent prop guard idiot.

myhondas Posted at 2015-6-5 09:00
What you also fail to realize is that the "Fail Safe" is NOT !  You do know that 'flyaways' are occu ...

Flyaways are occurring quite often??

Person 1 - my Phantom flew away all by itself. I didn't do anything. (Later evidence reveals pure panic on the part of the pilot)
Person 2 - I heard some guy had a flyaway.
Person 3 - I'm not sure I want to buy a (fill in the blank) - I hear there's flyaways.
Person 4 - There are flyaways happening quite often.

There are now thousands of Phantom 3 owners. Heaven knows how many owners of previous versions of the Phantom. Yes, there probably have been some bona-fide flyaways. My personal opinion - flying much too far away, too high, behind trees, buildings, in the dark, too windy. Thousands of happy pilots out there are NOT experiencing incredible problems.

I'm not bold enough to let my $1,000+ craft wander far enough away that things can easily get out of control. Despite some annoyances (growing pains) with the P3, DJI has produced a terrific line of products. But they can't prevent stupid.

Mark97564 Posted at 2015-6-5 12:06
Freakin prop guards!  I could have told you the guy was a moron just from seeing prop guards on it.. ...

I'm so glad you're here to tell some of us what idiots we are.   Some of us are new to the hobby and want to protect our investment.

Prop Gaurds? I have some on order. I want to protect my investment while flying any new craft in begginer mode, at least until I understand knowing its capabilities very well.
Not sure why some have put a nix on them, as for many it may save them a nice bundle in unnecessary repair bills. Or help prevent injury to persons or property.

As for flying in No Fly Zones...
I have this, as a helpful tool, to go by.
http://www.dji.com/fly-safe/category-mc
Simply type your city in the window and see the map light up with your city and surrounding community. Very handy useful tool.
It may not be compete, but if trouble were to come knocking, I could show that I was not purposely in a designated no fly area and would be glad if the map was updated, regularly.

RedHotPoker

druiz100@hotmai Posted at 2015-6-5 12:32
Also if you going to do dumb stuff like this in the night, disable the lights and paint the dam thin ...

I like it. When I've amassed my fleet of drones, I will definitely have one configured for stealth night operations.

Antti Posted at 2015-6-5 13:45
At first glance I wouldn't say the pilot being an idiot. Ignorant is the correct word. A big if not  ...

Yes, and yes.

havasuphoto Posted at 2015-6-6 05:16
Yes, and yes.

I don't think there's anything wrong with prop guards per se, especially if you have to practice in a space with obstacles you might bump into by accident). I haven't used them myself, and I don't intend to.

But there does seem to be some circumstantial evidence, at least, that they increase the risk of VRS.

There ought to be a test to see if you're an idiot BEFORE you're allowed to buy a Phantom, or any other quadcopter.

I totally agree...  And my issue with prop guards is if you need them you don't know how to fly your toy and shouldn't be flying around a bunch of people..  Anyone who can fly right and don't panic won't need them And the only time I can see them beneficial is if your flying indoors around your house but not outside....  If your worried about hitting things outside you just shouldn't be flying..