Drone view of the neighborhood from last weekend.

[TomSeller]

There is a fair amount of ignorance displayed here about UAVs, their benefits, capabilities, and yes issues with their integration. .

Agree, There is a lot ignorance displayed here about the possible misuse of drones.

But what UAVs won't do, as Ron White proclaims... is 'Fix Stupid'.

No it won't, irresponsible drone operators will continue, unfortunately we can't do much about them..

 

[IslandTractor]

Agree, There is a lot ignorance displayed here about the possible misuse of drones.


No it won't, irresponsible drone operators will continue, unfortunately we can't do much about them..

Let's not go overboard here. We cannot stop the occasional irresponsible teenager from getting into a car and driving at 100mph down suburban streets but that doesn't mean that speed limits are ridiculous or that they don't help control carnage on the roads. That teenager will pay a price when caught and his punishment will then serve as a reminder to others of similar immaturity that there are consequences of our actions. We don't let just anyone walk into WallyWorld and purchase a LearJet to fly around whenever and wherever they choose according to their own rules. We register and license both motor vehicles and operators so there is certainly precedent.

I completely agree that drone/UAV technology is going to provide some unique and significant benefits to society. I would think that virtually all of us agree that individuals should be allowed to operate them but that doesn't mean there are not codifiable limits that will need to be developed and enforced. The automobile is a good analogy. We certainly benefit from having motor vehicles in our lives but there are well established limits on how we can use them that do not rely solely on the good intentions of those who own them.

It will take a while to work out reasonable policies and systems to enforce the "drone rules" but we managed to do just that for motor vehicles and aircraft so I have faith that our collective effort will find a reasonable if not perfect balance for drones/uavs as well. It is true that you cannot fix stupid but you can penalize forms of stupid that endanger others and if those penalties are appropriate they will deter others from acting stupid too.

 

[Garandman]

Agree, There is a lot ignorance displayed here about the possible misuse of drones.

Yes - keep up the good work!

Te primary privacy concern for civilian drones is not the operator: it's the data.

Take someone like me (and the vast majority of users) who only uses it on private property. The concern is that the drone supplier or others could hijack that data stream (which is almost always used in conjunction with an internet-connected device) for nefarious purposes. Many of the hardware suppliers and software developers are Chinese or other nationalities. As the US has shown, adding a trap door to hardware is not new.

Found an interesting factoid pertaining to the latest release of the Phantom software which includes waypoints and POI (Points of Interest). The ones clamoring loudest for these features were not typical knucklehead operators like myself: it was the SAR community. For the same reason they are asking for FLIR capabilities.

 

[TomSeller]

typical knucklehead operators like myself.

I can't argue with you about your description.

There are a lot of good uses for drones. Buzzing my livestock and getting them on the run is not and is what a knucklehead operator does.

 

[aczlan]

I can't argue with you about your description.
There are a lot of good uses for drones. Buzzing my livestock and getting them on the run is not and is what a knucklehead operator does.

That sounds like an excellent time to use a shotgun on a drone... If you can legally kill a dog that is actively harassing your livestock, why not a drone?

Aaron Z

 

[4570Man]

That sounds like an excellent time to use a shotgun on a drone... If you can legally kill a dog that is actively harassing your livestock, why not a drone? Aaron Z

You might have a hard time getting it in range, but that is adequate cause to shoot a drone in my book.

 

[dragoneggs]

Buzzing my livestock and getting them on the run is not and is what a knucklehead operator does.

So this has been a problem for you?

 

[Garandman]

I can't argue with you about your description.

There are a lot of good uses for drones. Buzzing my livestock and getting them on the run is not and is what a knucklehead operator does.

Riiiiight.

Worrying domestic livestock is illegal in just about every state - even the People's Republic of Massachusetts. So you're covered. But given the very limited range of civilian drones, you must live on a mighty small farm, or is it a pygmy goat herd?

 

[TomSeller]

Riiiiight.

Worrying domestic livestock is illegal in just about every state - even the People's Republic of Massachusetts. So you're covered. But given the very limited range of civilian drones, you must live on a mighty small farm, or is it a pygmy goat herd?

Acording to the Q&A answers in the attached link they can go out 2 miles.

Amazon.com : DJI Phantom 3 Professional Quadcopter Drone with 4K UHD Video Camera : Camera & Photo

I have a bluff above my main place where line of sight is about 20 miles. There are many houses on it and there is at least one knucklehead operator there that enjoys tremdous line of sight. That place starts about 3000' from the foot of the bluff and runs another 3000' in that direction.

Not that any of my places are 2 miles across, but out of curiousity how many pygmy goats can you raise on your 12 acres?

 

[TomSeller]

So this has been a problem for you?

I have seen drones a few times at my main place, one time it was buzzing over a heifer pen and the 30 heifers in there were slamming against the fence and barn for about 10 minutes until the drone took off. I could not see which house it returned to. One heifer actually went through the barb wire, got cut up a bit but was okay. Luckily none were injured seriously. At today's cattle prices that would be a costly loss. I spent the next day fixing fences, I had my shotgun that time but the drone did not return. If the drone operators were licensed including their location, I could have the local Sheriff pay the knucklehead a visit.