Flying My Quad Above the Clouds!

[DroneDude]

Precautions were taken into consideration before flying my phantom above the clouds. I am a student pilot. I understand the risk of airspace. I know that the minimum altitude you can fly over our area is 1,000ft agl. Even if someone was flying rural aeria hights (500ft agl) I wouldnt have been a risk. Being a student pilot, I know it is illegal to fly in the clouds unless on an IFR (instrument) flight plan. If someone was on an IFR flight plan, no controller would direct traffic to lower than 1,000ft agl in a non visual environment, as it would be dangerous. The general aviation airport is 10 miles away and would be un-landable on such a day. Many people do not make wise decisions when it comes to flying rc vehicles, leading to unfortunate stories in the news about privacy, interference ect. ALWAYS consider the risks before flying, it makes the hobby more enjoyable and allows you to know you can get films such as this one without causing risk to others. I am posting this in response to comments made on this video. I would advise anyone making a video such as this one to do the same. Thanks for Watching.

 

[aiidanwings]

Well that was irresponsible, and poorly representative of rc pilots.

 

[xuzme720]

Aiidan, that depends on whether or not the pilot is aware of full size aircraft and their flight paths in the area and making sure he's outside of them. I hate to jump to conclusions but since it's a Phantom, I doubt the overall consequences ever occurred..maybe I'm wrong though. I certainly hope I am.

 

[DroneDude]

Well that was irresponsible, and poorly representative of rc pilots.

I was using a Dji, I knew the altitude (450ft at the top), the distance away, and position based on a gps map. I was not flying blindly. Little risk was involved.

 

[DroneDude]

Aiidan, that depends on whether or not the pilot is aware of full size aircraft and their flight paths in the area and making sure he's outside of them. I hate to jump to conclusions but since it's a Phantom, I doubt the overall consequences ever occurred..maybe I'm wrong though. I certainly hope I am.

I am a student pilot. I understand the risk of airspace, because I am a student pilot I know that the minimum altitude you can fly over our area is 1,000agl. Even if someone was flying rural aeria hights (500agl) I wouldnt have been a risk. Plus, the general aviation airport is a good 10 milies away and if someone were to try to land on a day like that, they'd be in a world of hurt. Thanks for your comment.

 

[xuzme720]

I am a student pilot. I understand the risk of airspace, because I am a student pilot I know that the minimum altitude you can fly over our area is 1,000agl. Even if someone was flying rural aeria hights (500agl) I wouldnt have been a risk. Plus, the general aviation airport is a good 10 milies away and if someone were to try to land on a day like that, they'd be in a world of hurt. Thanks for your comment.

It's good that you have taken these things into consideration. Most Phantom pilots are not as aware as you are of what is going on around them. You can find them in your local paper being sensationalized by the media. Given that our hobby is under fire from lazy bureaucrats it's just a bad time to post up videos like this, regardless of how beautiful the vistas are. In fact, it might be a good idea to post in your video description some of the safety precautions you took so you don't have such a harsh reception from the rest of your viewers. It's a shame that we even have to point this stuff out but since it's so easy for an inexperienced pilot to get our models and do stupid things with them, we tend to jump the gun these days.

 

[Tactical Ex]

Highly recommend taking Xuzme's advice on posting what you did in the video regarding safety.

 

[DroneDude]

It's good that you have taken these things into consideration. Most Phantom pilots are not as aware as you are of what is going on around them. You can find them in your local paper being sensationalized by the media. Given that our hobby is under fire from lazy bureaucrats it's just a bad time to post up videos like this, regardless of how beautiful the vistas are. In fact, it might be a good idea to post in your video description some of the safety precautions you took so you don't have such a harsh reception from the rest of your viewers. It's a shame that we even have to point this stuff out but since it's so easy for an inexperienced pilot to get our models and do stupid things with them, we tend to jump the gun these days.

Thank you for your reply. I agree with your suggestion of stating some of the precautions in the description of the video, it seems to be a wise thing to do. It is true this hobby is taking an unfortunate turn. Its unintelligent people with "drones" flying over crime scenes, entering airspace, and making many other dumb decisions that make the news and ruin the hobby for the rest of us. Thanks again for sharing your thoughts,
DroneDude

 

[DroneDude]

Highly recommend taking Xuzme's advice on posting what you did in the video regarding safety.

Thanks, I plan to.

 

[mjmccarron]

Drone Dude,
I appreciate and respect your knowledge and skill. The scenery was absolutely beautiful as you flew up through the clouds and broke into the blue. I'm a full scale pilot as well and I always enjoy the perspective we get when flying. I think that through education, people who would misuse our hobby might be swayed. If they can see what well thought out and legal flying can accomplish, maybe they will want to learn more and be involved in the promotion of our hobby and not commit acts that tarnish us as a group. It's unfortunate that the world around us has changed to make us so critical. What is it they say? "Paranoia is just smart thinking when someone is out to get you" LOL Keep up the good work.
Mike

 

[DroneDude]

Drone Dude,
I appreciate and respect your knowledge and skill. The scenery was absolutely beautiful as you flew up through the clouds and broke into the blue. I'm a full scale pilot as well and I always enjoy the perspective we get when flying. I think that through education, people who would misuse our hobby might be swayed. If they can see what well thought out and legal flying can accomplish, maybe they will want to learn more and be involved in the promotion of our hobby and not commit acts that tarnish us as a group. It's unfortunate that the world around us has changed to make us so critical. What is it they say? "Paranoia is just smart thinking when someone is out to get you" LOL Keep up the good work.
Mike

Thank you for your response! Couldn't have said it better myself. Full scale flying is a huge passion of mine and I believe it is very important for people to understand the risks of sharing the air space. Thanks again,
DroneDude