Vancouver, WA (Virtual Oregon) reporting for duty!  My first "real" drone the Mavic pro has logged its first few flights. Loving it so far and can't wait for more fun than usual out in nature, backpacking, mtn. biking, etc... Maybe a 'Middle-WA' drone-campout weekend is in order?

I finally got mine yesterday!    Had to cancel my DJI order, and ordered from Amazon like I should have done in the first place...  Did a couple of beginner shakedown flights yesterday over the house - so far loving it!    Can't wait for some "sunnier" weather here in Washington!

Hello from the East hill of Auburn, I have a P4 and just received my Mavic, haven't flown it yet due to weather ..Lots of flights with the P4, it is excellent! flown at home and Green water area, want to get up to Mt Rainier this spring.

Renton here also, I own a P4P+ and have done a few flights with the usual beginner mistakes I guess, like forgetting to press "Record"...... :-)
How do yu upload pictures from the computer?
I'd love to fly at the Snoqualmie Falls, anyone done this yet? Are there restrictions?
Cheers to all WA peeps!

Just got my first drone a couple days ago..
  I'm blown away at how easy it is to fly.
  -Mavic Pro

Pic shot hovering over my house.

I forgot to add, I'm down in the Lacey Area.

fans547d7885 Posted at 2017-2-4 22:17
Redmond checking in. New Phantom 4 and can't wait to get more time!!!

I too am in Redmond, my Mavic arrives tomorrow, never flown a drone before. Where do you take yours around here?

Snow is starting to melt however the temperatures are still in the Thirties...  Looking forward to a great summer of flying in the Wenatchee Valley...

Hi Steven, I have flown a few areas around there Port Gardner is doable as long as you stay well north of the naval base. This should be prime during the summer as you can fly out over Jetty Island. I launched from the North View Area.

RonH Posted at 2017-2-3 09:30
I'm out in the Maple Valley area of SE King County.  Been flying for 2.5 years - P2vision+, P3Pro, and now the P4Pro.  I'm extremely happy with the performance and the camera on the P4P.  I have been practicing at some school soccer fields with no problems.  I do not fly when children are present.  They have a gate and the school seems to have no problem with me walking past the gate and flying.  One Saturday I drove in and was flying when someone came out to talk with me.  I was expecting the worst, but after we visited about the P4P for a while, he asked if I would lock up the gate when I was done.  I think if we're respectful and careful, we minimize our problems.  I also fly over areas where home developments are being installed.  Normally I fly over these on the weekends when no work is being done.   I have flown in the late afternoon during work hours, but made a point to stay away from where they were working.  Pickups drove past me and no problems.   There are some nice agriculture fields down in the valley between Auburn and Kent (by the old Midway Drive In) that make for nice non busy areas to fly.  It's under the SeaTac class B airspace, but traffic from Auburn needs to be watched.  I have my Remote Pilot Certificate and would enjoy flying with others.  Stay safe and enjoy.

Hey RonH, I'd like to get together sometime and fly or get together and discuss the business side of 107 flying.  I'm scheduled to test on the 13th and would like to find some commercial 107 pilots to learn and get more experience from.  Maybe a mentorship type thing.

Odan Posted at 2017-2-3 18:35
WOW... looks like Wa. is getting to be dronesville...Greetings fellow Rentenite.
Where you been flying ??
I live in Skyway.  have a nice 5acher field to fly in

Hey Odan, how did it ever go with meeting with the KCSO?  Also, did you ever file a complaint with the FAA over that guy shooting at your drone?  I think you should.  If they are going to regulate us like aircraft, then they can protect us like aircraft too, which means if they would charge someone for shooting at a regular plane or helicopter, then they should charge someone for shooting at our sUAV.  Only after a few people get charged with shooting at them, will the public learn they can't just be shooting at them because they don't like them...they can't be shooting at them period.

RicknCovington Posted at 2017-2-26 20:26
Hey RonH, I'd like to get together sometime and fly or get together and discuss the business side of 107 flying.  I'm scheduled to test on the 13th and would like to find some commercial 107 pilots to learn and get more experience from.  Maybe a mentorship type thing.

Watching this thread - I think it would be a blast to get some together and exchange some ideas - fly some drones and have a general Q&A......

Here in Federal Way--NE Tacoma

JackA Posted at 2017-2-24 09:10
Snow is starting to melt however the temperatures are still in the Thirties...  Looking forward to a great summer of flying in the Wenatchee Valley...

The Columbia looks like glass! Great shot of the river and Navarre Coulee!

JackA Posted at 2017-2-24 09:10
Snow is starting to melt however the temperatures are still in the Thirties...  Looking forward to a great summer of flying in the Wenatchee Valley...

Looks great! The family and I are actually looking to move to Wenatchee for work. The area has sonmich more diverse beauty than other parts of the country.

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JackA Posted at 2017-1-16 08:50
You are all welcome to come to north central Washington to fly!  Massively open sky, excellent natural features to video and photo.  From Wenatchee north to the Canadian boarder.  Great places to camp or RV and very good hotels.  Columbia River, Cascade Mountains, forests and open plains.  Let me know what you are interested in and I'll tell you what's available.

Hi JackA,

We will be taking our trailer and my Phantom IV to Dry Falls SP in a month.  I would like to shoot cliffs and dramatic landscapes, but that will not be allowed in the park.  Anywhere else similar where drones are legal?

Hal

John Hansey Posted at 2017-1-23 09:25
Hi Washington flyers, I have flown my P3S slightly over 1 million feet or 181 flights mostly around the Sequin area. Have found out that talking with neighbors and showing off drone leads to people giving permission to fly over their property.
Happy hovering!

People do not own the airspace over their private property, and cannot forbid you from flying over it.    However, common sense should prevail, and you should not even give the appearance of spying on anyone.  I live 1/2 block from Hood Canal on a hill.  To shoot the waterfront,  I send the drone straight up to 200 feet, then out over the water to do whatever I choose.  From that altitude, no one even sees or hears it, let alone complains about it.  Just offshore, the scenery is gorgeous, there are no trees, buildings or power lines, and I can shoot the shoreline of Kitsap Memorial State Park without violating any laws.  I have now started shooting all of the accessible beaches in Kitsap County.  My favorite launch sites are public piers when not many people are around.  After 20 flights, I could easily land this thing in the back of my pickup.  You don't need a big field.  When people see how precisely you can land these things, they have no objections from a safety standpoint, and are generally very curious and friendly.  That will change in a heartbeat with reckless behavior, as the idiot going to jail in Seattle found out.   Common sense will prevent a lot of problems and restrictive regulations.

BlueZone Posted at 2017-3-8 18:38
Steilacoom WA

great shot.

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That's a lovely shot!

Hey anybody else jump through the hoops and Remote Pilot Certified?  Just took and passed the test today and look forward to using it in the future.  I'll finish up the paperwork in a couple of days, (give the system a couple days to make sure my score is in it), and then get my temporary until the permanent comes in the mail.  Anybody got any jobs where they need another ground crew (visual observer), or someone to fly for them, drop me a line, and I'll send you my phone number.

RicknCovington Posted at 2017-3-13 15:56
Hey anybody else jump through the hoops and Remote Pilot Certified?  Just took and passed the test today and look forward to using it in the future.  I'll finish up the paperwork in a couple of days, (give the system a couple days to make sure my score is in it), and then get my temporary until the permanent comes in the mail.  Anybody got any jobs where they need another ground crew (visual observer), or someone to fly for them, drop me a line, and I'll send you my phone number.

Hi! I just passed the exam for the Remote Pilot Certificate as well, and live in Renton. I work downtown for an Architecture firm though, and i'll be doing a lot of commercial shoots for things like Site Surveys, View studies, and animation purposes (i'm also responsible for the firms 3D renderings).

I kind of went about the whole process backwards.. I have maybe 15 minutes of flight time logged so far on my Mavic Pro... so still a lot to learn, but I know the exam like the back of my hand (well, not really. i passed with a 90%). I definitely appreciate the information here so far and look forward to learning more.

Hey joe
I live in Covington and work in Renton.  Maybe we can get together in renton, after work some day, and discuss the aerial services business opportunities these things open.  name here is Rick
.

RicknCovington Posted at 2017-3-13 15:56
Hey anybody else jump through the hoops and Remote Pilot Certified?  Just took and passed the test today and look forward to using it in the future.  I'll finish up the paperwork in a couple of days, (give the system a couple days to make sure my score is in it), and then get my temporary until the permanent comes in the mail.  Anybody got any jobs where they need another ground crew (visual observer), or someone to fly for them, drop me a line, and I'll send you my phone number.

Congrats, Rick! Where did you take the test? At Rainier? What studies did you use to prepare? Thanks for sharing some insight.

slowgojoe Posted at 2017-3-14 12:49
Hi! I just passed the exam for the Remote Pilot Certificate as well, and live in Renton. I work downtown for an Architecture firm though, and i'll be doing a lot of commercial shoots for things like Site Surveys, View studies, and animation purposes (i'm also responsible for the firms 3D renderings).

I kind of went about the whole process backwards.. I have maybe 15 minutes of flight time logged so far on my Mavic Pro... so still a lot to learn, but I know the exam like the back of my hand (well, not really. i passed with a 90%). I definitely appreciate the information here so far and look forward to learning more.

Congrats to you too, Joe! Where did you take the test and what material did you use to study for it? Thanks for sharing your insight.

Talnz Posted at 2017-2-7 07:12
I finally got mine yesterday!    Had to cancel my DJI order, and ordered from Amazon like I should have done in the first place...  Did a couple of beginner shakedown flights yesterday over the house - so far loving it!    Can't wait for some "sunnier" weather here in Washington!

Don't we all wait for dryer weather so we can fly a bit more often.......

JackA Posted at 2017-2-24 09:10
Snow is starting to melt however the temperatures are still in the Thirties...  Looking forward to a great summer of flying in the Wenatchee Valley...

This is a gorgeous shot! TFS

928Estates Posted at 2017-3-14 22:28
Congrats, Rick! Where did you take the test? At Rainier? What studies did you use to prepare? Thanks for sharing some insight.

took the test at the Aviation Training Center, located on Renton Airport.  I took the remotepilot101.com course, as well as did the FAA Online course, as well as, read, reread, and reread again all the study guides, circulars, etc.  Must have done the final test at remotepilot101.com over 100 times.   I missed 5 questions on the test.  Should have only missed 1, but two of them I didn't even bother looking at the sectional chart, because I was sure I knew the frequency for the airport they were asking about.  I am sure now  that I didn't know the right frequency and should have looked at the sectional...lol.  Anyway, I think I could have passed the test, (not as high a score), without doing the remotepilot101.com course, but he has a lot of great information and does a pretty good job with all the videos.  I would say no matter which way you go, be sure to at least go through the FAA materials and study guides at least once, because I know I got some info from those items, that wasn't covered, or at least not very well, in the remotepilot101.com course.

Remotepilot101 offers some nice information and even additional that wasn't in the test. I like how they update their videos over time.

I used their course and passed this week after a week of study. I do have some aeronautical background which helps.

RicknCovington Posted at 2017-3-14 21:22
Hey joe
I live in Covington and work in Renton.  Maybe we can get together in renton, after work some day, and discuss the aerial services business opportunities these things open.  name here is Rick
.

If you do and don't mind another to tag along (with P4) put me in the queue.....thanks!!

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I'm from Iowa actually, but here's a shot from the Lake Cle Elum area.
I go out to WA frequently to visit my dear girlfriend.

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BlueZone Posted at 2017-4-30 11:43
Nice  shot ikell

Absolutely!

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Kent checking in. new to this. but with all the rules it almost seems like you need to go find a dirt road in the woods to just fly with no restrictions or have to call a airport.

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