The CAA drone code seems to cover the obvious but there are still some unanswered questions.

Take off / landing - Is launching from either public/common land or public rights of way/footpaths acceptable?

Once in the air, do land/property owners have any right to deny overflight of their property (assuming the CAA rules are being observerd)

As long as the line of sight rule is adhered to, is night flying permitted?

Hi there, the drone code is ummm... I don't know really. It's certainly nothing to do with the law. You need to read the Air Navigation Order 2016, download and search it for 'UAV' to find the relevant articles.

Take off - ok if nothing within 30m of you and you're 150m from congested areas
Land owners - debatable but no they have no right to deny, but have a right to privacy and quiet
Night - not actually written but vlos suggests you need to see things around your drone, you can't do that at night

Small unmanned aircraft
94.—(1) A person must not cause or permit any article or animal (whether or not attached to a parachute) to be dropped from a small unmanned aircraft so as to endanger persons or property.
(2) The person in charge of a small unmanned aircraft may only fly the aircraft if reasonably satisfied that the flight can safely be made.
(3) The person in charge of a small unmanned aircraft must maintain direct, unaided visual contact with the aircraft sufficient to monitor its flight path in relation to other aircraft, persons, vehicles, vessels and structures for the purpose of avoiding collisions.
(4) The person in charge of a small unmanned aircraft which has a mass of more than 7kg excluding its fuel but including any articles or equipment installed in or attached to the aircraft at the commencement of its flight, must not fly the aircraft—
(a) in Class A, C, D or E airspace unless the permission of the appropriate air traffic control unit has been obtained;
(b) within an aerodrome traffic zone during the notified hours of watch of the air traffic control unit (if any) at that aerodrome unless the permission of any such air traffic control unit has been obtained; or
(c) at a height of more than 400 feet above the surface unless it is flying in airspace described in sub-paragraph (a) or (b) and in accordance with the requirements for that airspace.
(5) The person in charge of a small unmanned aircraft must not fly the aircraft for the purposes of commercial operations except in accordance with a permission granted by the CAA.

Small unmanned surveillance aircraft
95.—(1) The person in charge of a small unmanned surveillance aircraft must not fly the aircraft
in any of the circumstances described in paragraph (2) except in accordance with a permission
issued by the CAA.
(2) The circumstances referred to in paragraph (1) are—
(a) over or within 150 metres of any congested area;
(b) over or within 150 metres of an organised open-air assembly of more than 1,000 persons;
(c) within 50 metres of any vessel, vehicle or structure which is not under the control of the
person in charge of the aircraft; or
(d) subject to paragraphs (3) and (4), within 50 metres of any person.
(3) Subject to paragraph (4), during take-off or landing, a small unmanned surveillance aircraft
must not be flown within 30 metres of any person.
(4) Paragraphs (2)(d) and (3) do not apply to the person in charge of the small unmanned
surveillance aircraft or a person under the control of the person in charge of the aircraft.
(5) In this article, “a small unmanned surveillance aircraft” means a small unmanned aircraft
which is equipped to undertake any form of surveillance or data acquisition.

1.  I don't believe there are any restrictions on take off/landing unless a local council or other authority has passed a by-law.   
It can be hard to find out about by-laws so unless there is an obvious sign saying not to fly, you can wait to be told off before you need to obey and as long as you aren't causing a problem you probably never will be.

Note that the National Trust and Dartmoor National Park Authority currently both have bi-laws legally preventing powered flight from their land.  I think the NT bans all flight including kites. DNP doesn't own most of the land on Dartmoor which makes it hard to know if you can fly or not, but as long as you are not disturbing anyone's peaceful afternoon walk there is unlikely to be a problem.   These bi-laws where created when powered flight meant noisy 2-stroke petrol engines disturbing the piece, hopefully they will be updated soon.

2. No, but keep to a sensible height over private land (eg the 50m shown on the Dronecode), don't go annoying people or worrying farm animals.   If you are stopping to photo something not normally accessible to the public then the owners might appreciate you asking permission.

3. The Dronecode doesn't mention night flight so presumably it is not restricted as long as you follow the other rules including keeping the drone in sight.  

Remember that the pilot is responsible for any damage / injury / collisions / other problems.

In case you are not aware, the Dronecode has recently been updated: http://dronesafe.uk/drone-code/

Another question ;)
The CAA guidelines mention the line of sight guideline is "generally" 500m. Are there any circumstances when it would be more than 500m?

paul-h Posted at 2016-12-3 22:21
Another question ;)
The CAA guidelines mention the line of sight guideline is "generally" 500m. Are  ...

Only if your eyesight is very good

A lot depends upon light conditions when you're flying and contrast. I've gone to about 700m VLOS but that is really pushing it. Which is why it can be handy to have somebody acting as an observer, where their task is purely to watch the aircraft at all times and advise you of any hazards.

paul-h Posted at 2016-12-3 22:21
Another question ;)
The CAA guidelines mention the line of sight guideline is "generally" 500m. Are  ...

I think the old Dronecode gave a distance limit, but it now just says to keep in sight.   I think the limit was always guidance based on how far average people can see, not an actual rule.

Obviously how far away you can see the drone depends on the size of the drone, the colour, viewing conditions and your eyesight.

If you want to extend it, try fitting a bright strobe light, although remember that just because you can see your drone doesn't mean you can see other peoples drones, especially if they are smaller, which may be a safety issue.  ( http://www.flytron.com/led-syste ... e.html#/color-white )

Also you can use a spotter with better eyesight than you.  Apparently not allowed to use binoculars, or even wear glasses though!  (must be "direct unaided visual contact")

I think the actual law if you are using FPV is nicely contained in this document, although most people will follow the Dronecode rather than the law: http://publicapps.caa.co.uk/moda ... ail&pagetype=65

Note in that document, that since we have a camera on board we are allowed to fly to an altitude of 1000 ft rather than the 400 in the Dronecode if you can maintain direct visual contact.  Also applies if not using FPV or a spotter, although I'm not convinced that is sensible for a Phantom since it takes a long time to descend from that altitude.

I think a Phantom is a bit small for most people to be able to see at 500m, the limit is probably more like 400m.

Nigel_ Posted at 2016-12-3 23:56
I think the old Dronecode gave a distance limit, but it now just says to keep in sight.   I think  ...

"or even wear glasses though! "

You are allowed to wear glasses, that is classed as vision correction.

And you do need an observer if you were to fly to 1000ft:-

This is a good guide :- https://bmfa.org/Info/Model-Flying-Types/First-Person-View-FPV

Aardvark Posted at 2016-12-4 00:12
"or even wear glasses though! "

You are allowed to wear glasses, that is classed as vision correct ...

Wonder if you can get magnified glasses then

The 400 ft rule applies to "Small unmanned aircraft".  Because the Phantom has a camera on board and collects data it is a "Small unmanned surveillance aircraft" and there is no 400 ft rule in the "Small unmanned surveillance aircraft" section of "The Air Navigation Order 2016 and Regulations":    http://publicapps.caa.co.uk/moda ... =detail&id=7523

So I don't know how the 400 ft rule applies to the Phantom?   Except via the Dronecode which is only guidance, not law.

Nigel_ Posted at 2016-12-4 01:07
Wonder if you can get magnified glasses then

The 400 ft rule applies to "Small unmanned ...

And to be honest I think this is why the CAA produced the drone code, a simple guideline for all to follow.
One thing it does stipulate though is that failure to fly responsibly could lead to a criminal prosecution.

And I've just noticed they're pushing a 'Drone Assist' App', I'll have t have a play with that.

Hi there

can someone please explain the following highlighted statements?
Small unmanned surveillance aircraft
95.—(1) The person in charge of a small unmanned surveillance aircraft must not fly the aircraft
in any of the circumstances described in paragraph (2) except in accordance with a permission
issued by the CAA.
(2) The circumstances referred to in paragraph (1) are—
(a) over or within 150 metres of any congested area;
(b) over or within 150 metres of an organised open-air assembly of more than 1,000 persons;
(c) within 50 metres of any vessel, vehicle or structure which is not under the control of the
person in charge of the aircraft; or
(d) subject to paragraphs (3) and (4), within 50 metres of any person.
(3) Subject to paragraph (4), during take-off or landing, a small unmanned surveillance aircraft
must not be flown within 30 metres of any person.
(4) Paragraphs (2)(d) and (3) do not apply to the person in charge of the small unmanned
surveillance aircraft or a person under the control of the person in charge of the aircraft.
(5) In this article, “a small unmanned surveillance aircraft” means a small unmanned aircraft
which is equipped to undertake any form of surveillance or data acquisition.

my concern is it would be impossible in many cases to fly as take-off and landing areas may not be away from things (parked cars, moving vehicles) that are no incontrol of the pilot.

also, point 4 says (2)(d) and (3) do not apply - i am a bit confused.
other govt site says the its ok to be in 30 meters during take-off and landing
http://www.eryri-npa.gov.uk/authority/news-and-media/using-drones


thanks for the help.

"my concern is it would be impossible in many cases to fly as take-off and landing areas may not be away from things (parked cars, moving vehicles) that are no incontrol of the pilot."

And that's a problem for many. I always fly in the countryside and it's not too difficult there.

You are not allowed to take off or land within 30m of anybody apart from the person in charge of the aircraft and people under his/her direct control. Section 4 overrides section 3 for the pilot and people under his control. In your second example they are not specifically wrong, but they do not make it clear that 'any person' should only be the pilot or persons under their control.

Supposing your takeoff/LZ is initially clear but during the course of your flight cars and people appear inside the 30M of your LZ. Can you tell them to move (assuming all parties had a right to be ther)? What's the correct way to deal with this hypothetical situation?

helidan Posted at 2017-1-8 04:08
Supposing your takeoff/LZ is initially clear but during the course of your flight cars and people appear inside the 30M of your LZ. Can you tell them to move (assuming all parties had a right to be ther)? What's the correct way to deal with this hypothetical situation?

That tends to happen quite often!

I guess the correct way is to move your landing zone away from the people.

Although I find that they tend to follow you since they have normally stopped to talk about the aircraft, so it is normally better to take them into your control and tell them where to stand while you land, most people will be happy to take instructions as long as they are reasonable and friendly instructions - don't just tell them to go away, being unfriendly will often lead to conflict.

helidan Posted at 2017-1-8 04:08
Supposing your takeoff/LZ is initially clear but during the course of your flight cars and people appear inside the 30M of your LZ. Can you tell them to move (assuming all parties had a right to be ther)? What's the correct way to deal with this hypothetical situation?

A pre site survey of the location would point to the use of warning signs and a controled layout ie safe operating flight zone, in the event these were ignored by any arrivals of the general public then you would be advised to land your craft immediately in your pre planned emergency safe landing zone you decided on in your pre site survey.

I am in the UK and spoke to someone recently who said he flies his drone with FPV glasses and he often flies it near it's range of 7km! I pointed out that this is illegal and he said it's OK I have insurance - ha ha

Dave P Posted at 2017-1-26 07:58
I am in the UK and spoke to someone recently who said he flies his drone with FPV glasses and he often flies it near it's range of 7km! I pointed out that this is illegal and he said it's OK I have insurance - ha ha

It's legal as long as he has someone standing right next to him who has direct unaided sight of the aircraft and who is able to see the aircraft at his 7Km range!    I guess you would need a drone the size of a 747...

I suspect he would have difficulty convincing his insurance that any claim was valid, and even more difficulty convincing any judge that he was flying safely.

I would say any more than 500 metres would be questionable

Dave P Posted at 2017-1-26 09:42
I would say any more than 500 metres would be questionable

For a Phantom sized drone, 500 meters is a bit far unless you have very good eyes or have added some decent strobe lights, even then if you are flying close to something you can't see the relative distances accurately so you need to be quite careful.

Last time I took mine out to 500 meters, I had a helicopter fly directly over me - no way to bring the drone back in time when it was 1/2Km away, if you are flying using FPV goggles you wont be able to see where the helicopter is so how do you avoid it without a spotter who has been watching and is able to take control?   Legally you need to be sure the flight can be completed safely before you take off, including dealing with the unexpected.

Nigel_ Posted at 2017-1-26 10:35
For a Phantom sized drone, 500 meters is a bit far unless you have very good eyes or have added some decent strobe lights, even then if you are flying close to something you can't see the relative distances accurately so you need to be quite careful.

Last time I took mine out to 500 meters, I had a helicopter fly directly over me - no way to bring the drone back in time when it was 1/2Km away, if you are flying using FPV goggles you wont be able to see where the helicopter is so how do you avoid it without a spotter who has been watching and is able to take control?   Legally you need to be sure the flight can be completed safely before you take off, including dealing with the unexpected.

Agreed, my little mishap happened at just over 400 metres, luckily I found it planted 2 metres up a tree with 2 broken propellers, lucky me

Can someone who knows, no guessing ;-) clarify the following please:-
1. The regulations quoted at the top of this post are law and not advisory
2. If flying with FPV goggles it is not classed as surveillance
3.  If flying with FPV goggles you MUST have another person as a spotter as you do not have unaided line of sight
4. If flying with FPV goggles it must be flown within unaided sight of the spotter
5. If the drone has the ability to record an image or video, whether being used to record or not, it is classed as surveillance
6. I have seen recommendations to use them in your garden, but unless you have a large garden surely you could be within 30m of a person and 50m of a vessel, vehicle, structure.

I will add that I agree with all of these regulations but I don't want to quote them at people who don't if they are just advisory.

Dave P Posted at 2017-1-27 02:01
Can someone who knows, no guessing ;-) clarify the following please:-
1. The regulations quoted at the top of this post are law and not advisory
2. If flying with FPV goggles it is not classed as surveillance

The link below might help you decide

http://droneaware.org/

Dave P Posted at 2017-1-27 02:01
Can someone who knows, no guessing ;-) clarify the following please:-
1. The regulations quoted at the top of this post are law and not advisory
2. If flying with FPV goggles it is not classed as surveillance

Effectively you have all that correct.

You should add that your spotter must be standing alongside you, you can't have them standing on the next hill advising you.

However, if you are flying a quadcopter then I suggest you follow the Drone Code rather than try to understand the law, in the same way you would follow the Highway Code when driving.  If you comply with the Drone Code then you are unlikely to get into trouble since that is what you are expected to do.

With regard to flying in the garden, you can fly within 50m of your own house, but like you say for most people it is not possible to do while staying within the Drone Code and it is quite likely also not possible without their neighbours getting concerned about safety, noise and privacy issues - hovering at bedroom level is bound to worry people if you are too close whatever the real reason is, staying within 1 meter of the ground for a test flight is unlikely to be an issue but probably still not within the rules.

In addition to the rules on flying,  you also have to comply with privacy law.

Nigel_ Posted at 2017-1-27 04:47
Effectively you have all that correct.

You should add that your spotter must be standing alongside you, you can't have them standing on the next hill advising you.

I read the drone code before you had posted the excerpts above but that doesn't mention not taking off within 30 metres

Dave P Posted at 2017-1-27 08:55
I read the drone code before you had posted the excerpts above but that doesn't mention not taking off within 30 metres

If you follow the Drone Code then you will always be at least 50m away so will easily be within the rules!

The 30 meters rule probably results from the rules being written for fixed wing aircraft before quadcopters existed and allows for people to stand in a safe position behind the aircraft while it travels down the runway at take off, or at the sides of the runway while the aircraft makes a slow speed landing.  The fact that the rule exists doesn't mean that it is appropriate to use it when flying a quadcopter which may fly unexpectedly at high speed in any direction.   

The spotter doesn't have to be standing next to you but be able to communicate instantly (via radio or phone if call is in progress)to avoid a collision. So affectively you could fly 7 km if you had 7 spotters direct communication with you.
You have to be able to see the drone to avoid collision not get it back to you or land.

broadlandboy Posted at 2017-1-27 10:01
The spotter doesn't have to be standing next to you but be able to communicate instantly (via radio or phone if call is in progress)to avoid a collision. So affectively you could fly 7 km if you had 7 spotters direct communication with you.
You have to be able to see the drone to avoid collision not get it back to you or land.

"
7) The person in charge must ensure that:
a) the competent observer is fully briefed on the planned flight and what is expected of
him/her taking into account the prevailing conditions;
b) the competent observer understands that he/she must stay directly adjacent to the
person in charge and maintain direct unaided visual contact with the SUA at all times,
to visually and aurally monitor the airspace for other aircraft and the take-off and
landing area for any persons;
"
http://publicapps.caa.co.uk/moda ... =detail&id=7344

I had an interesting question about the rules and flying at night. My logic leads me to think you could probably see the aircraft because of the lights but probably not other obstacles and people so couldn't satisfy the regulations?

paul-h Posted at 2016-12-3 14:21
Another question ;)
The CAA guidelines mention the line of sight guideline is "generally" 500m. Are there any circumstances when it would be more than 500m?

I think you could fly further, but you would need permission from CAA, and they will insist you have a spotter.

broadlandboy Posted at 2017-1-27 10:01
The spotter doesn't have to be standing next to you but be able to communicate instantly (via radio or phone if call is in progress)to avoid a collision. So affectively you could fly 7 km if you had 7 spotters direct communication with you.
You have to be able to see the drone to avoid collision not get it back to you or land.

You can't have 7 spotters unless you get permission from CAA, If you can't verbally communicate, the you must be in radio contact.

Nigel_ Posted at 2017-1-26 10:35
For a Phantom sized drone, 500 meters is a bit far unless you have very good eyes or have added some decent strobe lights, even then if you are flying close to something you can't see the relative distances accurately so you need to be quite careful.

Last time I took mine out to 500 meters, I had a helicopter fly directly over me - no way to bring the drone back in time when it was 1/2Km away, if you are flying using FPV goggles you wont be able to see where the helicopter is so how do you avoid it without a spotter who has been watching and is able to take control?   Legally you need to be sure the flight can be completed safely before you take off, including dealing with the unexpected.

Correct the CAA will tell you before you take of you should have at least 1 other safe place to land your aircraft, this is to be related to your spotter, so if people encroach you landing area, and you or spotter can't remove them , you should land your aircraft in your safe designated area.

Dave P Posted at 2017-2-1 00:23
I had an interesting question about the rules and flying at night. My logic leads me to think you could probably see the aircraft because of the lights but probably not other obstacles and people so couldn't satisfy the regulations?

As far as I am aware, the rules covering drones say nothing about time of day and there are no general rules which cover drone use that do. Certainly it is not mentioned in the Drone Code. So you need to go back to the basic rules:

"
94 (2) The person in charge of a small unmanned aircraft may only fly the aircraft if reasonably satisfied that the flight can safely be made.

94 (3) The person in charge of a small unmanned aircraft must maintain direct, unaided visual contact with the aircraft sufficient to monitor its flight path in relation to other aircraft, persons, vehicles, vessels and structures for the purpose of avoiding collisions.
"
If you are out on the moors on a moonless night then I think it is fair to say that you can't see the 50m required for you to ensure that you don't fly within 50 meters of people so you wont be able to take off.  If there is a full moon then maybe you can depending on how good your night-time sight is, but you might need to check beforehand that there are no electricity cables or other hazards in the area.

If you are flying in the middle off a football field with the floodlights turned on then there will be no problem.  Also if you are flying inside your home with the lights turned on and everyone else in the house under your control then no problem

I've never seen anything which strictly forbids night flight.  In all honestly I quite enjoy night flights, the Phantom is very easy to spot due to its bright arm lights, the tablet display can be seen easily.  Until I read something official that restricts night ops I will continue to fly at night (but within the drone code of course!!)