Sometimes people ask me at random about my drone and how it works, the operating laws and more, and more often than not I am more than happy to explain.
There are a few rules to follow certainly in the United Kingdom.
1st thing is to understand how your drone works and then apply for a licence (here)
- Keep the drone in sight – VLOS – Visual line of sight
- The drone must be within 400ft from the operator
- Ensure the drone and accessories, controller etc has the operator / flying ID displayed
- Make sure its safe to fly the drone based on the weather (Use this app)
- Check the area has no flight restrictions (Use this app)
- Be sensible, don’t fly over animals, children, schools etc
If your work means you are needing to fly nearby a school or college etc, personally id wait until the school holidays or on a weekend when said location is closed.
As a pedestrian please follow the following rules.
- Do not speak to a drone pilot if they are flying as this can cause them to loose control of the aircraft, instead wait for them to land the drone before approaching them, unless immediate danger is lurking.
- Never shout at a drone pilot, they are not just controlling the aircraft, they are also manning the camera controls and ensuring they are flying safely.
- Just because the range on my aircraft is ten miles, I always ensure the drone is in sight, thankfully at night and during low light situation my drone has navigational lights. However after flying once at night before, I doubt I will fly again it was very scary.