Nidge
Captain
United Kingdom
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Geoff_Tac Posted at 6-19 07:29
Registration is a big one. I am not registering and paying the government for permission to use this camera. Then there is the requirement to know what are "no fly zones", I get it around airports, but there are thousands of no fly zones around the US and that limits the usefulness of these things. Then there is this mandatory training requirement I am hearing about that you will have to present to law enforcement if asked for it....HELL NO!
I’ll be the first to admit that many of the registration requirements placed on hobbyists are born from a knee jerk reaction and a demonstration of general ignorance by the authorities, but in the last five years or so there has been plenty of evidence provided to these authorities of delinquent individuals willingly going above and beyond the realms of sensibility.
The US was probably one of the first regions to make registration mandatory but it still has one of the most lenient schedules. Recently Canada has imposed some of the most draconian and restrictive forms of legislation that to all intents and purposes your average person has been banned from flying a “Drone”.
Here in the UK we are currently going through a similar change to regulations that will impact anyone and everyone who operates any form of flying model, including paper aeroplanes. As it stands at the moment the proposal will mean that we will have to pay an annual mandatory fee of around $25, persons under the age of 14 will need to be supervised at all times, and everyone will have to take a mandatory online proficiency test. There has also been a lot of talk that in the future all models will be required to have ADS-B transponders fitted, this gives you some idea of how ignorant those making these regulations truly are.
I’ve been playing and experimenting with autonomous models for around 15 years or so but it is mainly in the last five years that it has become fashionable, due mainly in part to the availability of RTF models such as the Phantom and its clones, and the relative lack of skill and understanding required to put one of these models in the air. I also think that the consumer Drone craze is on the decline, I base this on the decreasing activity in online forums and Facebook groups and the fact that many manufacturers have either ceased production or are moving their interests more toward the commercial market. It is to this end I believe the powers that be here in the UK have grossly overestimated the number of expected registrations and that the scheme has inadvertently been designed to fail.
As for the current requirements for registration in the US I would suggest you do it. You don’t lose any privileges by doing so, but by not doing so you effect those whom are abiding by the regulations and inviting the introduction of further regulation which will place further restrictions and penalties.
Regards
Nidge.
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