drones

[rancher1913]

i read on another forum about using drones to keep an eye on things and have seen the footage from the war zone. decided to give it a try, bought a not to cheep drone cause i planned to use it a good ways out and wanted hopefully decent quality. took me about 2 hours to do all the set up and pairing and what not. was very easy to use once it was set up, one button to launch it and then your off and flying. figured i would stretch its legs to see if it would actually work for surveillance, went about a mile out to the bull pasture and dropped down almost right on the bulls, they kept looking around but never looked up, did the return to home command and it flew right back to me. next i inspected the chimney for creosote build up and then just did some sightseeing. video quality was very good, i could get a license plate off a car easily, so i think it will be excellent to keep an eye on things but not put myself in harms way. i know it could be shot down but thats better than me getting shot. biggest draw back was it was made in china.

[BLAHUT]

Sounds very interesting, wave of the future ????

[Bmi48219]

Did it come with the camera?

[jjamna]

Ditto on did it come with a camera and do you have a link to yours?

[jaysouth]

Game wardens love these things.

[Milsurp Junkie]

Which make/model?
J

[contender1]

I own a few private drones.

First off, there are FAA regulations concerning the LEGAL uses for one. I won't go into detail,,, but it's very easy to get into serious trouble if you violate these laws. Federal trouble. Felony. Loss of gun rights.

I own private property. I caught a drone illegally over my property taking video footage. I shot it down. It landed well into my property,, which happened to be my gun range. I then saw it was most likely a "commercial" one,, being operated by a business. I called the FAA. (I knew the laws.)
The drone has it's FAA license number on it. The owner tried to come onto my property. Yet,, I had a gate up. I told him he was trespassing. I made him leave. I also called the FAA, regional office & requested a federal marshal to investigate. A local LEO showed up,, & tried to get me to turn over the drone to the owner. I had already "secured" the drone, and politely asked the LEO if he was a Federal officer,, and if he was aware of the Federal laws. He wasn't. I asked him how the owner might have thought I had the drone. He said; "He has video footage he was recording." I smiled. I said for him to call his most senior ranking officer or the sheriff out there. The Sheriff responded.
When I asked him about his knowledge of Federal laws concerning drones,, he was a bit better educated. I informed him I had already called the FAA, and requested a US Marshal. AND I informed him that the deputy would be called as a witness to the statement by the suspected owner. The Sheriff called the US Marshals as well.
It ended with the FAA confiscating the drone, revoking the commercial license of this drone owner, severe fines, (over $5000) and a felony conviction.

I kept a copy of the video footage just in case it got "misplaced or lost" & had my attorney keep it.

My point in this lengthy post is to try & prevent GOOD people from getting into trouble with a drone. They are fun, they have a good purpose, and can be used for a lot of good things. But, photographing other people, places can be illegal. Traveling over private property is also illegal. There are altitude restrictions, and such.
So, I STRONGLY urge anybody who may get a drone to educate themselves on the legalities of their use.

[BLAHUT]

I own a few private drones.

First off, there are FAA regulations concerning the LEGAL uses for one. I won't go into detail,,, but it's very easy to get into serious trouble if you violate these laws. Federal trouble. Felony. Loss of gun rights.

I own private property. I caught a drone illegally over my property taking video footage. I shot it down. It landed well into my property,, which happened to be my gun range. I then saw it was most likely a "commercial" one,, being operated by a business. I called the FAA. (I knew the laws.)
The drone has it's FAA license number on it. The owner tried to come onto my property. Yet,, I had a gate up. I told him he was trespassing. I made him leave. I also called the FAA, regional office & requested a federal marshal to investigate. A local LEO showed up,, & tried to get me to turn over the drone to the owner. I had already "secured" the drone, and politely asked the LEO if he was a Federal officer,, and if he was aware of the Federal laws. He wasn't. I asked him how the owner might have thought I had the drone. He said; "He has video footage he was recording." I smiled. I said for him to call his most senior ranking officer or the sheriff out there. The Sheriff responded.
When I asked him about his knowledge of Federal laws concerning drones,, he was a bit better educated. I informed him I had already called the FAA, and requested a US Marshal. AND I informed him that the deputy would be called as a witness to the statement by the suspected owner. The Sheriff called the US Marshals as well.
It ended with the FAA confiscating the drone, revoking the commercial license of this drone owner, severe fines, (over $5000) and a felony conviction.

I kept a copy of the video footage just in case it got "misplaced or lost" & had my attorney keep it.

My point in this lengthy post is to try & prevent GOOD people from getting into trouble with a drone. They are fun, they have a good purpose, and can be used for a lot of good things. But, photographing other people, places can be illegal. Traveling over private property is also illegal. There are altitude restrictions, and such.
So, I STRONGLY urge anybody who may get a drone to educate themselves on the legalities of their use.

My question, what did you use to shoot it down ???

[T-Bird]

good load of 6's ought'a do it!

[MaryB]

I use one to inspect my ham radio towers. 1080p video to my tablet for a bigger picture. I can see if any leg bolts vibrated out or broke, if any antenna hardware is missing, if anything looks like it is slipping(can see scoring on the mast). Save me a tower climb(now it saves me paying someone to tower climb!). About the only thing I use it for... It gets used if we get called out to search for a missing person but that is a super rare event. I have used it once for that

[Three44s]

We have a drone at our ranch. We also have enough of our own property to fly on there is little excuse to bother anyone else with it.

In my case watching out for manned aircraft is about the single issue I have to deal with. Our drone is limited to flying below 400 feet above the lift off elevation.

Our camera is a 4K thus the resolution is breath taking when you play back from the Micro SD card. The live feed is only 720P to my tablet. That is quite a restriction.

I have driven cattle with our unit. They gather cattle and sheep with drones in AU and NZ.

Three44s

[firefly1957]

I have 60 acres and would occasionally like to use a drone but most need a smart phone for all the features and I do not have or want a smart phone .
I also have some issues with cell phone coverage here so some things may not work but I am not sure of this .

I would not need a drone with a lot of air time our distance just real good images.

[Three44s]

I have 60 acres and would occasionally like to use a drone but most need a smart phone for all the features and I do not have or want a smart phone .
I also have some issues with cell phone coverage here so some things may not work but I am not sure of this.

I would not need a drone with a lot of air time our distance just real good images.

We use a 10” IOS tablet. We were told that an Apple product gave better video smoothness.

Three44s

[.429&H110]

Trouble with drones?

Raytheon Coyote 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0osofUsbaRc

links don't usually work for me
I promise there is no bad language.

[Big Tom]

My understanding is that the airspace if free (besides the restricted zones like airports, military installations etc.). Shooting a drone down that is flying over your property is legally the same as shooting a Cessna 172 down or a Boeing 737. I highly recommend that whoever considers this, reaches out to a lawyer first.

...I caught a drone illegally over my property taking video footage. I shot it down. It landed well into my property,, which happened to be my gun range. I then saw it was most likely a "commercial" one,, being operated by a business. I called the FAA. (I knew the laws.)...

[Cast10]

Big Tom is correct. The FAA governs the National Airspace System.

Rules are changing. Everyone will need a certificate of one kind or another soon; Sept. 16, 2023. All small drones will have to have Remote ID, that’s why they’re all cheap right now, they don’t have it! I would suggest you visit FAA.gov.

https://www.faa.gov/uas/getting_star...d/drone_pilots

Also, most states have laws governing surveillance activities.

[Finster101]

If it is hovering over my property and within shot gun range it is too low and there too long for anyone to just be playing. I am not fond of them. I can see where they would be a useful tool, but I think most are just purchased as toys which is also fine as long as laws are obeyed.

[MT Gianni]

In 2005 I watched bison being worked at the National Bison Range in Moiese MT. They had a large drone, about 3 1/2 feet across flying 35-40 feet over the animals inspecting them for "Ticks, temperature, general health and condition". Some students out of a Florida University were monitoring and flying it while ranch hands looked at the footage and data. The animals acted like they had no idea it was there. I can see real benefits for working stock with it. I am not sure, but I think some of the bison were chipped and the data was readable too.

[contender1]

"My question, what did you use to shoot it down ??? "

I happened to have my Rem 870 with turkey loads in it. The drone didn't stand a chance.

As for the ownership of airspace. Yes,, the FAA has "jurisdiction" over airspace. BUT,, over your own property, you have a 400 ft max altitude you can use to fly a private drone. The FAA has a 500 ft ceiling for airspace control.
And in my case,, the US Marshal & I discussed the airspace thing. The drone was WELL below 100 ft, AND videoing my property. And my property,, is a GUN RANGE. I said; "Hey,, I can't help it I missed the clay bird & hit a drone." He realized I had a strong argument for shooting it down. And as noted,, it was WELL across the property lines, onto my property.

But,, a drone can be fun. It can also be a great tool when used properly & legally. Checking crops, cattle, private inspection of your home, etc. All kinds of good uses.
But since we do have privacy laws, and trespass laws,, my actions were well within my legal rights.

[trails4u]

My understanding is that the airspace if free (besides the restricted zones like airports, military installations etc.). Shooting a drone down that is flying over your property is legally the same as shooting a Cessna 172 down or a Boeing 737. I highly recommend that whoever considers this, reaches out to a lawyer first.

THIS is the LEGAL truth of the matter. As private property owners, we own ZERO airspace. It is, however, technically possible to 'trespass' with a drone, but generally, legally speaking, that would only be possible after a complaint had been filed/confirmed for some kind of surveillance/peeping tom/etc. ONLY after such had been legally established, and a restrictive order in place, would a drone incursion be considered a legal trespass. To shoot one down absent of such an order is unquestionably a crime.

BigTom is spot on....as for great stories about such things...well, whatever.

FWIW....I do hold a Part 107 commercial license and do fly regularly for fed. agencies.