Drones

Yup. Anything commercial requires (currently) a 333a exemption. As said above.

That’s why everything I do is for fun and a hobby. I never get paid for anything related to aerial photography. The rules are about to change and it will be interesting to see what comes of it.

I used to be into FPV racing, but that wasn’t as fun as it first seemed to me. Plus flying FPV is pretty much illegal in the current onslaught of FAA/AMA rules. That’s why they usually choose indoor places such as stadiums or warehouses.

Today for $1399 you can buy a DJI Phantom 4 that has autonomous flight, subject tracking and obstacle avoidance that 5 years ago was unimaginable in anything short of a military spec piece of hardware costing millions. For someone who’s been into RC since I was a kid it’s unbelievable how fast this sport is advancing technology wise in past several years.

https://youtu.be/h3E9VwqZ0Xk

I have a friend working for another company where they build technical ways to take out drones :lol:

Anyone used a Typhoon? I am thinking about getting this as it has some decent features I want for a really respectable price point.

http://www.yuneec.com/products/aerialuav/q500_4k

Edit: just read that phantom 4 link and really like that too…

I don’t own one personally but they are a very popular alternative to DJI products, most of the hobby shops seem to sell yuneec if they don’t sell DJI

popping into this thread… i recently inherited a substantial collection of rc’s, including a few planes, 5 helicopters and a cheap drone. will be unloading most, but tried out the drone today. seems i can get this thing too high and too far pretty easily. accidentally flew it into a tree about 20 ft up, but it survived. haven’t tried out the camera on it but it seems pretty fun.

curious to see what happens with this regulation on them. i have a private runway behind my house (owned by family member) but is registered with homeland security.

Definitely curious to see what you picked up. I also need to use that runway for the plane I’ve been holding off on flying in fear of destroying it. lol It is going to be one massive handful to fly the 540qq.

I finally made the decision between the yuneec and the dji. My Phantom 4 will be here sometime next week. Looking forward to flying it around all the open land around me.

Anyone sign up for the part 107 test that begins at the end of the month?

Can you sign up? I thought we had to wait until August 29th or something to get more information. I know that there is a school in Dunkirk that is certified to administer and I will be standing at their door the second I can be.

There was a thing on the news last night about a group in Hamburg that races FPV. I can’t look into it or RIP my wallet.

You can schedule your test

im going down to Ithaca that Wednesday so two days after its offered

I think this is my next toy

https://youtu.be/mH33bKp3BHA

This is my next toy. Just waiting for one of the bind and fly pre-modded ones to come back in stock.

I’ve been kicking around the idea for this one but really don’t want to keep buying more models right now. haha I have the Edge 540QQ and I still have not flown it in fear I’m going to dive it right into the ground. lol This plane is much bigger, able to fly in stronger winds, has flaps, bigger wheels for rougher surfaces.

https://youtu.be/yXXnBOb-xPg

Anyone pass their 107 test yet? I passed last week with a 87%! Have my temp certificate as of yesterday

on the subject of drones… looking to purchase one. I have a GoPro 4 Silver that I’d really like to utilize so at the moment I’m leaning to the GoPro Karma coming out this month but I’m not turned off to the idea of a DJI. Anyone have input here?

I love my phantom 4. I did smash it into a chimney thanks to a quick gust of wind. Now the gimble is all shaky and fucked. It took right back off after new props which is pretty amazing.

I ditched my racing drone a while back and just picked up a Phantom 3 standard :tup:

Great drone takes great video will post some clips shortly

Also if you’re looking for something to screw around with on the cheap the Syma X5C and all their similar models around the $50-60 price point are great and batteries are super cheap.

You can get into a pretty nice FPV racing setup for $300 now.

https://youtu.be/z2Q2KdhtmFA