The issues of control and safety are related. The hypothetical "if" can only be used so far when it comes to claiming control. If is a big little word that can be continually expanded to amass more and more control. A commercial plane, IF it falls our of the sky, could kill hundreds and destroy million of dollars of property but we still have them flying over major cities because as terrible as that is in odds are low that it will happen so don't ban flight over congested areas. With drones some reasonable restriction should be in place that balance public safty and personal freedom.
Unfortunately, drones are not made with the same level of safety as commercial aircraft. Until they are, I think it prudent to err on the side of safety. An Anafi falling from a height will do some serious damage to anything below its downward trajectory. I feel the restrictions of not allowing flying over other people & their property is appropriate for recreational & basic commercial usage of a drone.
I guess it also comes down to cultural differences too, as I don't know of any Aussies that have issue with being controlled in regards to their freedoms of flying a drone here. It's basically just doing it with consideration for all others in regards to the regulations & governances of using a drone. It's not about believing we are being controlled by the man or anything like that & it's not subservience & just accepting whatever we are told either. The drone usage regulations were created in negotiation with users & the general population in the first place & that has continued to this day.
Here is what US commercial UAS operators have to follow. Take a look a the link as I would love to see how the rules between Australia and the US differ.
§107.39 Operation over human beings.
No person may operate a small unmanned aircraft over a human being unless that human being is:
(a) Directly participating in the operation of the small unmanned aircraft; or
(b) Located under a covered structure or inside a stationary vehicle that can provide reasonable protection from a falling small unmanned aircraft.
www.ecfr.gov
A couple of loose guidelines from our governing bodies website:
- You must not fly your drone in a way that creates a hazard to another aircraft, person or property, so follow our rules every time you fly.
- You must not fly your drone within 30 metres of people, unless the other person is part of controlling or navigating the drone.
- You must not fly over or above people. This could include festivals, sporting ovals, populated beaches, parks, busy roads and footpaths.
- You must not operate your drone in a way that creates a hazard to another aircraft, person, or property
- You must not operate your drone in prohibited or restricted areas.
The regulations talk about populated areas in regards to flying over & near to people. This is a loose term that translates to also mean the suburbs, in particular, other peoples homes where there is an expectation of safety & privacy, the beach, certain parks, roadways, etc...
Aussie recreational drone usage laws
Aussie commercial drone usage laws
Flying over your own property
A license is not necessary for commercially operating a drone that is under 2 Kg. There is a special category called "Excluded" but it has many limitations to it, basically making it the same as recreational usage. It is in this category that I am able to offer free drone access to local community groups, but, I need to be a 30 metre radius from people at all times & not fly over any populated areas at the events, such as tents or marquees or shelters, vehicles, amusement rides, processions, etc...
To attain a license here is relatively expensive & unless you have a drone with the ability to continue flying when a motor cuts out & also has a secondary battery to kick in when the first gives up the ghost, you will still be limited to the "Excluded" flying category! There are 2 licenses here, the REPL (remote pilots license) which allows you to now fly within 15 metres of people, woo hoo! Once you have your licence, you may operate commercially with an operator (a holder of an RPA operators certificate, or ReOC), or apply for your own certificate. So if you wanted to operate your own drone commercially, you also need the REOC. Otherwise, you need to find someone who has their REOC & work under them. It's around about six to seven thousand dollars to get both licenses here. Then you would need a Typhoon-H as a minimum to meet the working minus 1 motor ruling, but would have to build in a failsafe extra battery also, so you are really forced to have to use the much more expensive DJI line of drones, if you want to do most real-estate aerial photography (as you are over other peoples property), night or flying over crowds at all.
