Hello,

I am confused that it is okay to fly in the night??

What is common sense?

I thought (or I saw some news) that people should not fly the drone in the night.

Then I saw some video on youtube about people flying drone in the night.

I am cycling around the world. So, I want to follow common sense for my drone.

Thanks,

Depends on the country as to what the laws are. Probably best to check before you go in to each new country as the laws may change too.

Where/how are you going to charge your batteries?!

Good luck.

ScottyT Posted at 2015-7-7 16:23
Depends on the country as to what the laws are. Probably best to check before you go in to each new  ...

To fly drone in the night is not about safety such as do not fly close to people or tree...
It only depends on the law??

I have flown my P3 at night, it is much easier to see the drone and therefore keep it clearly within line of sight (due to the lights) but obstacles are much harder to see (due to it being pitch black). At least for me I went upto the legal limit here in Singapore pretty much straight up and took stills and they turned out great. I have seen plenty of videos of  people shooting videos but when I try it I will make sure I am somewhere very open or at least well lit to avoid crashing. Obviously if it is illegal in the country I wouldn't recommend it.

bluebird Posted at 2015-7-7 16:26
To fly drone in the night is not about safety such as do not fly close to people or tree...
It onl ...

depends on common sense.

that means, if:
- you are sure that there are no poles/wires/cables/antennas/any other obstacles invisible at night that you can hit
- you are sure that there is no risk for you/other people,
- you are sure local law does not prohibit such things

then go, fly, get stunning photos/videos.

FAA suggests......no.     
http://www.faa.gov/uas/model_aircraft/

There is no visual line of sight at night.  

This is going to be a local law thing..

Here in NZ the a new set of rules/laws about this are being released 1st august which make flying at night OK if you are lower than an object (tree/building) taller than you want to fly, and within 100m of it.  (Right now it's illegal to fly model aircraft at night, unless indoors, so this is a nice thing to have added...)

The idea being that you can fly into airspace that might be in use by other craft..

We also have the 'line of sight' rule, so if you can't see it, you can't fly it.

It's very easy to see at night. And also helps a lot if you're flying line of sight it's easier to see at night than during the day

InspirelessAggi Posted at 2015-7-8 07:00
FAA suggests......no.     
http://www.faa.gov/uas/model_aircraft/

I'm confused by your response.  FAA has no rules against flying at night, and YES you can maintain visual line of sight at night (in fact it's arguably easier then daytime).  So...assuming you follow the other rules, FAA does not care if you fly at night in the U.S.

InspirelessAggi Posted at 2015-7-8 07:00
FAA suggests......no.     
http://www.faa.gov/uas/model_aircraft/

Um... No... you can see the lights... even better at night... and if you can see the lights that's line of sight...

use to fly high power rockets at night... Only needed lights and some people used glow sticks....

Spankybear Posted at 2015-7-8 08:59
Um... No... you can see the lights... even better at night... and if you can see the lights that's ...

Um no.  Visual orientation was far worse at relatively close distances while flying during the July 4th fireworks.   Flying over an open field for safety, mind you.  It's not a rocket.   I had to rely almost solely on FPV.  And LOS wasn't that great even with the lights on.   Very quickly, I couldn't tell red from green orientation. The drone is so small.  LOS is more than just seeing lights.  It has reference to proper control while in visual range

TAZ Posted at 2015-7-8 08:58
I'm confused by your response.  FAA has no rules against flying at night, and YES you can maintain ...

I said suggests.  Not a rule

pidetectives@ya Posted at 2015-7-8 08:52
It's very easy to see at night. And also helps a lot if you're flying line of sight it's easier to s ...

I agree. The LED's make it very easy to see at night and to keep your orientation.

It is ok to fly at night.

InspirelessAggi Posted at 2015-7-8 09:12
I said suggests.  Not a rule

FAA does not "suggest" against flying at night either.

TAZ Posted at 2015-7-8 09:21
FAA does not "suggest" against flying at night either.

Right. They suggest line of sight and safety of operation. Which means orientation.   This diminishes very quickly and at much shorter distance at night.  I could not tell proper orientation when flying unless it was relatively close to me.  Line of sight also suggests you have vision not only of obstacles around you but other areal vehicles.   It is very hard to judge distance and proximity at night.  Depth perception is drastically reduced.

Do as you wish.  I flew at night during the fireworks.   I could not tell what the orientation was and had to try hard to rely on FPV on my iPad.   Just because you can do something , doesn't make it safe.

I'll probably get all sorts of opinions,   The point is, don't loose proper visual ques when flying.  The phantom is small and the distance between red lights and green disappates greatly very quickly.  I personally had problems beyond 100 feet and I have 2020 night vision.  So, I kept it close.  

It's ok to fly at night if you are maintaining LOS.  

InspirelessAggi Posted at 2015-7-8 09:28
Right. They suggest line of sight and safety of operation. Which means orientation.   I could not t ...

Correct.  Line of sight, obstacle avoidance, and safe operation are the operative criteria.  Time of day can certainly reduce operational limits (as can weather, fog, etc...), but safe nighttime flying is currently OK.  Just wanted to be clear that FAA does not currently limit nighttime flights (although new rules currently being proposed may, if adopted). However, FAA only governs U.S.  Australia for example is one place where it is illegal to fly a UAS at night.

TAZ Posted at 2015-7-8 09:38
Correct.  Line of sight, obstacle avoidance, and safe operation are the operative criteria.  Time  ...

I wonder what justification Australia gives for no night flying?  There has to be a logical explanation

InspirelessAggi Posted at 2015-7-8 09:11
Um no.  Visual orientation was far worse at relatively close distances while flying during the July ...

Having red and green lights on the P3 make it a lot easier to tell the orientation at night from grater distances, compared to the day.  From the posts in this thread I can see that I am not alone.  And to say the FPV was better for you makes me question the conditions of your flight. Maybe you were flying in a pyrotechnical hays or you may have to get your glasses upgraded.  In my opinion FPV is a lot more difficult, especially if the ground level is dark. My first backup for orientation would have been the real time mapping in the pilot app and not FPV.

-Dog

InspirelessAggi Posted at 2015-7-8 09:11
Um no.  Visual orientation was far worse at relatively close distances while flying during the July ...

Well I find it easier to see the lights and night and see what way it's going... So I have visual contact and even better at night.

You right it's not a rocket...  But we fly under FAA rules also... and we fly MUCH higher... Some to the tune of 90,000' plus msl. Darn straight we have to follow FAA rules just like model aircraft... And yes we fly at night with lights...

If you are colorblind and can not see red v green... then I can see your issue at night... Not true for me...

Why worry, don't publish the fact then who is going to know, just go ahead and do it, but keep quiet about it.