Donalbain
lvl.1
Flight distance : 208504 ft
Germany
Offline
|
Yes. It was indeed so difficult that I did not finish the process. Or better: The Sri Lankan officials did not finish the process.
I emailed them, got a nice reply with lots of PDF files, filled them out and sent them back, asked about the fees (I did not really understand the sri lankan legalese) – and did not get a reply.
There was also a clearance I had to get from the OCDS – but they never replied – even though it said that I could get clearance via email.
There was also a form that was impossible to fill out honestly: They wanted to know every date and location of intended flights weeks in advance … Also It looked like the fee was ridiculously high for such a mini drone.
So I flew without permission. No one ever bothered us. When the area is touristy, the locals are used to the drones and ignore them. Otherwise they are interested, smile and look over your shoulder on the display :-) So, no problem. I stayed a bit out of sight and did not make a big fuss out of it.
The policemen were fine with it. Some asked no to be filmed while they were drinking and relaxing on the beach (while on duty).
Good idea would be to ask in hotels or guest houses or tuk tuk drivers if there has been hassle concerning drones in that area. But I doubt that the policemen even know that you might need a permit. But stay clear of anything military! Temples might also be a sensitive matter.
In the end the biggest obstacle to flying was the high wind almost everywhere, so be careful and bring back nice videos! |
|