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Why We Need Certain Consumer Drone Regulations

Posted by samzenpus on from the get-out-of-the-way dept.

stowie writes: In the last week, state and federal firefighters have fought more than 270 wildfires in California. Here's the problem: firefighters are seeing more unauthorized consumer drones flying over active wildfires. Maybe the drone owners don't know or maybe they don't care, but temporary flight restrictions are placed over wildfire areas due to the aircraft used to help contain the fires. The aircraft used to knock down flames and survey burn areas have to cease operations when there is a drone in the air.

2 of 176 comments (clear)

  1. Re:obvious solution by amicusNYCL · · Score: 5, Insightful

    You probably wouldn't even need firearms -- maybe some kind of EMP pulse and let the drone fall into the fire.

    Right, because an EMP is so much easier to create, more portable, and less likely to cause collateral damage than a beanbag fired from a shotgun.

    Or a non-lethal shotgun round designed to take out propellers.

    Or a beanbag that carries enough kinetic energy to knock it down no matter where you hit it.

    a big tangle if nylon fishing line

    Right, let's launch loads of plastic all over the place.

    I wonder if there's some kind of compromise. Like, drones can scout out the situation until aircraft are deployed, and then must leave the area or risk destruction and/or heavy fines.

    Fine, let the fire department fly their scout drones to recon the fire before moving in. As far as civilians are concerned, stay the fuck away and let the professionals do their jobs.

    --
    "Our two-party system is like a bowl of shit looking at itself in a mirror." - Lewis Black
  2. Re:obvious solution by Obfuscant · · Score: 5, Insightful

    A drone sitting over the firefighters or behind them is going to be completely out of the flight line.

    Firefighting aircraft do not appear magically directly over a fire and then magically disappear after dumping their loads. They have to get from the landing area to the fire and then back again. As a drone operator, you have NO IDEA what the flight path of the firefighting aircraft will be since they have to consider weather and winds and desired destinations in their planning.

    And it's not a "flight line" -- that's the place where the airplanes park.

    Yes, there will be exceptions, but you can't make stupid illegal.

    You can make "dangerous" illegal. And putting an aircraft into a no-fly zone just to take pictures is not just stupid, it is dangerous -- which is why they put temporary flight restrictions over active fires in the first place.