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CAA still getting it wrong

Earlier this week I received a message from a Hamilton guy who answered a knock at the door to find police standing there.

His crime was that he flew one of these consumer-grade "drones" over people, buildings and cars then posted a video taken from that drone on YouTube.

Technically, he was in breach of several aspects of aviation regulations such as those parts of CA101 which prohibit flying any model at night and flying in controlled airspace without the necessary qualification or authority to do so.

Did he realise he was breaking the law?

No.

Is that any defense?

No it's not -- but I think it should be.

Our justice system dictates that ignorance of a law is no excuse for infringement of that law -- yet that in itself seems somewhat unjust.

I was speaking with Rex Kenny from CAA a month or two ago and again reiterated my concern that would-be "drone" fliers were not being given the important information they needed to ensure they flew legally.

For over a year I've been suggesting that the CAA homepage have a big bold link labeled "Important information for drone operators" or something similar. This link should lead off to a page that concisely outlines the legal obligations and limitations that apply to those who would fly these devices.

Rex told me that there was going to be significantly more info for these people on the CAA website but, when I checked this morning -- still nothing on the front page.

It is no wonder therefore, that people like Adam Crouchley of Hamilton are left stunned and surprised when they discover that what seemed like a quick flight with their "harmless" toy produces a visit from PC Plod and censure from CAA.

This isn't just an NZ problem though -- aviation administrators all over the world are facing the same problems and the incidents created often make Mr Crouchley's little flight look insignificant by comparison.

This video is a great example and shows that the operator of one of these craft positioned his machine only just off the approach path to a large airport so that he could film passenger jets as they landed. Now *that* is really bad!

Unfortunately, unless CAA really starts moving to engage with the rapidly growing number of people who spend a few hundred dollars to buy these craft -- completely unaware of the law controlling their use -- even worse could (and will) happen here in NZ.

What CAA perhaps don't understand is that these people are not self-policing in the way that regular RC model fliers are. These folk aren't interested in flying so much as getting cool video and they see these little multirotors as a tool, not a hobby. They often operate alone -- without peers to censure them if they do stupid stuff and with nobody showing them the right and wrong way to do stuff.

What's more, the national model flying body (MFNZ) aren't responsible for or interested in engaging this group -- because they aren't traditional RC model-flying hobbyists. Many are actually trying to earn a dollar from their drone flying and MFNZ expressly exclude themselves from any commercial use of such craft.

Since CAA are clearly stretched for resources and money (which is why *I* am still sitting on my thumbs, unable to test my SAA system which, ironically, would be of huge value in mitigating the risk these drones pose) so I'll put my hand up as someone who's glad to try and reach these folk and educate them as to what's right and what's wrong.

Right now, if something bad does happen involving one of these craft, CAA will have to shoulder a fair bit of the blame. If people don't know they're doing wrong, how can you blame them when shirt happens?

CAA... please engage and educate before it's too late. It seems to me that it would be an awful lot more efficient to ensure you're educating folk in advance than to find yourself bogged down in a mountain of prosecutions when drone operators act out of ignorance.

By the way.. do they play night cricket matches at any of the Hamilton sports grounds? If so, do they need a permit for cricket balls that might soar into the night sky when knocked for six within the confines of controlled airspace?

Related story: CAA grounds drone pilot

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