I've never owned a quadcopter, but have often thought of getting one. I work in the remote robotics industry and have been a fan of quadcopters, FPV and personal "drones" for years. That may change, though, if what I experienced yesterday is what we can expect in the future.
My wife and I were at the beach most of the day yesterday. There were probably a hundred other people in our small area, mostly families with kids. People had their awnings set up, bar-b-ques grilling, and kids running around just having fun. About mid afternoon a fellow showed up with a DJI Phantom (I recognized it because I often thought of buying one) and full FPV gear, not 10 feet from where my wife and I were, and not more than 30 feet from all the kids running around. He then launched and flew the drone up and down the beach, sometimes hovering over people, sometimes flying over boats and paddleboards that were passing by.
While I was in the water, his drone buzzed over my head, hovering maybe 5 feet away from me and stayed there. Just out of reach but definitely "studying me" like a buzzing giant mosquito. It was my first experience like this and I gotta tell you, it was creepy. I don't know this guy. I don't know his flying skills. I don't know how well he maintains his equipment. I don't know if he's shooting video of me and, if he is, what he plans on doing with that video. Is he a convict? Is he a child molester? I know nothing about this guy who is flying his quad just feet above me and is watching me so intently. The one thing I did know was that this guy's drone was invading my space and my privacy. He was watching (and probably videoing me) and I didn't like it. And I'm a guy, I can only imagine how I would have felt if I were a woman. Or a parent watching this drone hover over my small child. In that brief moment my feelings about personal drones reversed 180 degrees.
If what I just witnessed is the future of the technology, where people no can no longer live with any degree of privacy or space, I, for one, can no longer support it.
Comments
I am so sick of the 'creepy' label.
It is creepy only to those that don't understand it. A birds eye view from a toy helicopter at the beach is the worst way to get the type of photos that people like the OP seem so scared of (in a wide open public place no less).
@Bob - I get your point, but I don't think you got mine. I've spent some time with RC pilots and it was my impression that they do a pretty darn good job of self regulating themselves. Having never run into a situation like this before I, perhaps naively, thought that self regulation was enough for personal drone pilots. But apparently I was wrong. The risk of legislation and regulation is that maybe the laws they pass won't be what you hope for. What if they banned personal drones, not just from below 50 feet or not just from that one park, but from the entire county? Or the entire state? How happy would you be if that were to happen?
Other than a touch of sarcasm, it is unlikely most people here will disagree with you. Buzzing over the general public's head with a 4 spinning knives is never ok. Hovering a camera at close range over the general public, while not illegal, is indeed creepy. And none of that is encouraged on here. The guy was stupid.
To get this straight, you know NOTHING about this guy, but still think it appropriate to speculate publicly he has the potential to be a child molester or convict? Because his camera is on a toy helicopter? Get a grip.
I bet every person at that beach had a high definition camera. The quadcopter is far more conspicuous way to film than a phone. Why then are you singling him out? What would a child molestor do with a DJI Phantom that you are so scared of anyway?
I don't condone flying over or near others, and if true this guy is wrong to do that, but your other statements are completely inappropriate and idiotic.
@Daniel - Except none of your "what if's" are even remotely close to being true. There are no such "lifesaving" drones in this state and probably none in existence in this entire country. He was just some creepy guy who drove up alone in his truck, set up his FPV drone in the middle of a group of families enjoying a day at the beach, and then he flew his drone within feet of many of us for reasons unknown to any of us.
I knew I was going to get some flack for this post, but I thought it was worth posting. This event really opened my eyes to the potential harm a personal (or even government sanctioned) drone can do. I'm still in favor of using drones for certain missions, SAR is one that comes to mind. But the potential exists for less than ethical people to use them for less than ethical reasons. My hope is that some of the community would benefit from my story.
You didn't mention how angry the dirt bikers made you. You know, the ones that blasted down the edge of the surf line, throwing sand in everyone's face. Didn't they bother you?
Oh, they didn't because they weren't there? Why not? They love to blast all over the place. Was it, perhaps, because there are local ordinances against them riding on the beach? Well, then it seems the solution to your problem is obvious. Ask your city council to pass a regulation saying that RC aircraft may not fly lower than 50 feet above the beach.
The issue of model aircraft use is local on and therefore may require local, not national, regulations.
Don't want to see nude bathing at your local beach? The problem has already been taken care of. Why not just follow that lead?
Flying in close proximity to people is NEVER an acceptable practice, even for "lifeguards" unless it was an active rescue or something. I ran into this exact situation last Easter. There was a guy, with a Phontom, flying over the massive crowds of kids and parents at our local Easter egg hunt. It was unerring. As you said, I had no idea what his skills were, grade of equipment, etc. Even so, you can never rule out a failure of some kind. People are simply being reckless with these things. Those that do understand the dangers and safety concerns are not the topic here. It's everyone else.
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