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Location: Iceland Time: 2020?
I’ve experienced my first true trip in october 2017, when I’ve been in Iceland with my brother. An unique experience, which I’ll keep in my heart forever; I’ll try to come back to it sooner or later. My only regret is that I only had the smartphone with me and no passion for videos and drones yet.
Once I got back from this experience, I bought a DJI Mavic Air and a GoPro Hero 6, and I begun to make amateur videos during my travels, like the Mallorca and Switzerland video series.
I’ve a lot to learn, such as video photography and editing, I’m not a professional. I actually am an Italian pizzaiolo and kitchen assistant, living and working in Geneva, Switzerland.
Traveling, while telling my journeys with images, filming from the ground and from the sky, let me feel finally free to forget the routine stress.
Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon
How I plan my travels:
When I decide to travel, first of all I get information about the laws governing the use of drones and the permitted and prohibited areas. I search on the internet for places to visit and I create a map on Google MyMaps by entering the coordinates.
Based on the days of vacation, I take note of the air tickets and the overnight stay costs, I organize the travel. Usually in my hand luggage I carry the Drone, the GoPro, the camera from now and on, the batteries and the things that I consider important and valuable, in the hold baggage everything else. ( My equipment)
Application Process:- No application needed for recreational user if you want to fly in unrestricted areas with a drone.
What you should prepare before traveling with a drone in Iceland: - It is better to drain batteries and place them in fireproof cases if you take the plane, some airline companies may request it. Don't put batteries in your checked-in luggage but carry them with you.
- Apply a fireproof label on the drone with your full name and phone number, I recommend it even if you want to fly in other countries, I also applied it on my GoPro, in case of loss.
Regulations for recreational use:
- Total weight may not exceed 3 kg within urban areas & 25 kg in rural areas
- A drone with a total weight of 20 kg or more shall be insured.
- Do not fly over crowds of people. The operating area shall be defined to ensure sufficient distance from people, animals and property.
- Do not fly higher than 120 m above ground or sea.
- Keep the drone in sight at all times. Remotely piloted aircraft flights shall always be conducted within visual line of sight of a remote pilot or an RPA observer of a remotely piloted aircraft. However, a remotely piloted aircraft weighing less than 3 kg may be flown beyond visual line of sight of a remote pilot in case of flights outside densely populated and habited areas, provided that spacing is ensured and provided that the flight does not threaten persons, animals and manned aircraft or causes damage to property or disruption to bird colonies or wildlife habitats.
- It is forbidden to fly within 2 km from international airports & 1.5 km from other airports.
- Do not fly within 150 m from public buildings.
- Do not fly closer to residential buildings or premises than 50 m within urban areas & 150 m in rural areas without approval by the owner.
- Do not fly in national parc, hospitals, power plants, and any sensible and protected areas.
- Check all flight regulations & restrictions for the flying area before flying.
- The operator is responsible for damages that may arise from the use of the drone.
- Drone flights may not interfere with air traffic, ship or vehicle traffic. Stay far away from manned aircraft.
- Follow the general rules on the protection of property & privacy.
Additional regulations for professional use:
- Total weight of the drone may not exceed 7 kg within urban areas & 25 kg in rural areas.
- Register the drone at www.icetra.is, where you can also apply for exemptions from restrictions.
Recommendations:
The recreational use of drones is banned at all National Parks in Iceland, those are: Vatnajökull National Park, Snæfellsjökull National Park and Þingvellir National Park.
Please note that Vatnajökull National Park is very large, and new areas are incorporated into it regularly. For example, Skaftafell Nature Reserve and the Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon are part of this park, thus drones are forbidden at both.
This regulation has been put in place to protect the region's wildlife, as well as preserve the peace and tranquillity that many are trying to find in such locations.
Iceland's national parks have a peaceful ambience, thus the temptation may be there to try and get away with it. In short, don't; many visitors in the past began to complain that the low-flying buzz of a drone took away from their experience, and park staff will act on the law if they spot you.
This is not a total ban, however; those flying drones for science and research purposes are still allowed to fly at Vatnajökull, though permission must be granted to do so.
As well as within all national parks, the use of drones at many of Iceland's most popular attractions is now prohibited. Due to the increasing number of visitors as well as drone ownership, these restrictions have been put in place to preserve the visitor's experience which would undoubtedly be hampered if many drones were buzzing around.
These attractions include the famous waterfalls Gullfoss, Seljalandsfoss and Skógafoss, as well as Reynisfjara Beach. To find out whether the use of drones is prohibited, look out for yellow signs that feature a picture of a drone with a red line through it, as well as the words "DRONES ARE FORBIDDEN". ( Guide to Iceland)
Inspect your drone before and after each flight, check the entire frame for cracks including the landing gear and props. Make sure you have sufficient GPS signal and wait for the "Home Point Recorded" message to avoid a fly away, and an adequate RTH altitude setted for a safe return to home.
Always check the weather conditions to find out about wind conditions or if you'll find rain, fog or snow. Cold and high wind drain fast your batteries, and high-altitude winds could generate a "Max motor speed reached" alert which inform you that your drone is in danger.
The “see and avoid” principle applies to unmanned aircraft as well. Since an aircraft pilot stands little chance of recognizing a small drone early enough, it is your responsibility to take timely evasive action and always to maintain a proper distance from other aircrafts. Especially on the mountains, always fly in your line of sight, don't think to be alone all the time, helicopters and other planes you couldn't hear can come close to your drone; they often fly at low altitude leaving you a little reaction time. Flying a drone over the scene of an accident to take aerial pictures may impede a rescue helicopter from approaching the site. In addition, rescue services feel that their work is disturbed by drones. It is forbidden to fly a drone in an emergency operation if not instructed to do so by the operation leader.
Check regulation No. 990/ 2017 on the operation of remotely piloted aircraft.
The ‘geofencing’ functionality in DJI drones is a geographical restriction of the operational area of the drone that is specified by the manufacturer. The manufacturer’s restrictions might not be identical to the restrictions on use under the applicable national legislation. This means that you must always be aware of local flight restrictions before operating / piloting a DJI drone.
Useful tips: Bring filters with you, especially on the mountains or if you visit lakes and beaches or you find snow, I recommend you polarized filters for reflecting surfaces (i use 32/pl also).
Bring at least two batteries with you and make sure you have an empty and capacious SD card.
Find a way to make a daily backup of your footages; personally I use a backup unit with a SSD.
Bring a landing pad or landing gear and an outdoor first aid kit with you if you want to go hiking on the mountains and don't forget photography gloves in winter time and your sunglasses!
Official links:- There are no special requirements for getting a drone to Iceland
I want to share my preferred video shooted in Iceland, the author is Stefan Forster and it's simply amazing and well done!
https://youtu.be/F-1weFCiYBA
The Author:
ELEMENTS OF ICELAND: Since 15 years I'm traveling and guiding photography tours in Iceland. Although I am Swiss, my heart and soul live in Iceland. At the age of 18 I hiked alone through the Icelandic highlands for almost 3 weeks. Since then I go to this magical place several times a year. A year without Iceland is a lost year. But Iceland has changed a lot within the last years - not least because of photographers and filmmakers like me, who are still getting more people to travel to this little country. Many tourists in Iceland take no account of this fragile nature. They walk over the moss, let the engine run everywhere, leave their waste lying around, ... But far from the Golden Cyrcle there is still a huge wealth of beauties that are deserted and untouched. Let us take care of this unique country.
Background Information: The first time I took a drone to Iceland was back in 2013. With a huge and heavy 4000 Watt power generator I had to load my battery packs to get in the air for only 8 minutes. The first drone was a monster and there were no regulations in flying drones in Iceland because drones were new and very rare. In this 5 weeks back in 2013 I could fly in areas and heights which are now prohibited. (some footage in this video has been taken in 2013). Since 2013 drones have changed. They became smaller, faster, better and much cheaper. The first drone I brought to Iceland had a price of over 25'000 Euro - but the biggest part of this production has been taken with a small drone costs 20 times less than that (Mavic Pro / Mavic Pro 2). For me Iceland is one of the most amazing countries on earth. Of course it did change a lot since my first visit. In 2004 there were about 100'000 tourists a year NOW in 2018/2019 they predict over 2.2 Million visitors.
Details: Pilot / Cut / ColorGrading / Sampling: Stefan Forster
Music: Adi Goldstein (1. Song) August Wilhelmsson (Song 2 and 3)
Drone: DJI S1000 / DJI Mavic 2 Pro / DJI Mavic Pro
Used software: DaVinci Resolve Studio 15
I took this pictures listed below on my Samsung S7
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First Officer
Captain
lvl.4
