Who here owns a drone? Who here knows every single minute rule, regulation, and flight path allowed to actually fly it personally or commercially? Probably not very many. As the market grows, we find the FAA expanding rulings and steps to go by to make sure you are being safe and responsible when flying these types of devices. Though, even with all those in place we can still find ourselves with a wild neighbor prepared to shoot the thing straight out of the sky with ease.
The story goes Brad Jones took his DJI Inspire 2, a $3,000 drone, out for a flight in front of his home to capture sunset. Nothing out of the ordinary or beyond what I would do with my own drone. Though this time around his neighbor thought he would get adventurous and begin to fire into the air to grab it out of the sky, which is a federal crime.
Brad started by flying over his aunt's house and heard gunshots from afar. After a few minutes of flight he sped up the flight and headed back towards his own house. Only a few minutes passed and switched to camera mode from video to take some stills and heard more gunshots.
“Everything was fine, except the left rear motor with a bullet hole in it.”
Brad continued in the interview with ARS by stating; “It didn’t hit the ground as hard as it could have,” Jones said. “When it hit, it broke the left landing gear arm, snapped the molding off the Inspire. But it was still running. Didn’t damage batteries, rotors were intact. Everything was fine, except the left rear motor with a bullet hole in it.”
As wild as this story is I don't doubt one second of it. I just recently got a drone of my own and find myself always in the back country of Indiana where my parents live to fly around to get the hang of things. Though when cutting across the property to the neighbors my Dad always warns of the trigger happy farmer will take it down if he has the chance. So the danger is real, outside of the fact someone is firing a gun straight into the air.
Just a friendly reminder to keep in mind your surroundings, keep up on the latest FAA rulings, and of course watch for crazy neighbors that may own guns.
[via ARS Technica]
Nonetheless, i cant see how you can impulsively fire live rounds into the air in a residential neighborehood?
I can. It's called being an idiot.
I used to live in deep Amish country where your neighbors were a quarter-mile away, and even when people are that sparse, it's an incredibly stupid thing to do: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/amish-man-accidentally-killed-girl-in-horse-...
HAHAHA to me this just sounds soooo 'MURICA! xD All the prejudices of rednecks just pop up :D
Merica, all day!
Regardless of whether the drone operator is in the wrong, deciding to shoot the drone down as your first reaction is tantamount to insanity. Here's a crazy idea: approach the operator and have a conversation about it outlining your concerns.
With gun in hand and the "Redneck's Copy of the Second Amendment (Abridged)" in their back pocket, conversation will be on the back burner.
Ha! Yup, I grew up in the country and first thought when going back home to fly over the cornfields was getting shot down.
I would not be surprised if those who rages for people having too much right under 2nd Amendment are the same people who cry for drone bans over the national parks and major cities.
It is my belief the person who is recklessly using a firearm should be held accountable for his action, others who exercising thing right shouldn't lost theirs just because of one's action.
And stop that name calling game, build bridges, not tribes.
Ditto, it's not guns that are bad... It's idiots making a bad example of them.
How many idiot drone stories have we heard this year? There's the space Needle crash... The bridal party who is suing the groom for a broken nose... The guy who was knocked out by a drone taking on him. There's a certain percentage of the population who just doesn't seem to think about the ramifications of what they do 😤
Exactly!
And THAT is why we end up with regulations and red tape dictating every jot and tittle of our behavior.
The idiots will always be with us.
Guns aren't the answer, but I believe when one makes the decision to fly a drone with an image recording device over someone's private property, you waive your right to complain about the consequences.
To me, both the drone owner and the neighbor shooting the drone did things the wrong way...
The drone guy can't expect everyone will be happy having a flying drone with a video camera in their private property, the gun guy could have not used his gun and instead use his mouth and explain the other guy to please not fly over his property.
Both lack common sense IMHO
Good thing not that many neighbors with guns in Europe.
See if you can hit this one... :D
A challenge to rednecks if I ever heard one...