Recent content by dranders

The photo doesn’t show on the FoxFury D3060, because the lights are too bright, that one faces forward and the other is on top of the unit. They both can be put on strobe or either can have a steady beam. The write up in Rotor Drone Pro magazine shows promise for a unit that weighs 37 grams...

Great responses, thanks. Looks like I’ll put the strobe/light (meets FAA 3sm requirement) on top and the little bright strobe on the bottom of the gimbal protector. Yup, I’ll put an observer at the 3 mile point at night and log the info. I’ll post the results.

I want to install an anti-collision light on the top of my P3P, but I’m concerned that it might block the gps antenna signal. Any thoughts?

Still laughing!

Just a reminder: any crop dusters in the area? Those pilots get a nosebleed at anything above treetop level plus they seldom use radios. Also ultralights tend to fly in the weeds. Many of them don’t have radios. Looks like a nice flying area.

Great for setting backfires to help fight forest fires.

I’m 75 and still flying. When age/health catch up with me I’ll ground myself. Drones, which I’ve been flying for 4 or so years will be a nice transition to keep flying. As for bird strikes my Army King Air hit what was most likely an owl. The U-shaped dent in the leading edge of the wing...

The NOAA and other agencies have laid claim to airspace. Flying below 1,000 ft. over Snowy Plovers, sea otters, condor areas, or other areas shown on sectionals can result in stiff fines. Best we all familiarize ourselves with those little dots on the charts.

The FAA acted quickly to deal with the evolving UAV presence, while protecting the freedom we are accustomed to flying in this country. Hats off to them. Want to fly a toy and avoid the hassles? Buy a drone weighing less than .4 oz.

Yet I can fly a helicopter without altitude restrictions (other than being able to land without hazard with a power plant failure) over private property. Or a fixed wing a mere 1000 feet above. Lower if i’m landing. I’ve talked with people on the ground from an altitude of only a few hundred...

Another instance where a government agency makes laws without public input. I’m sure the fines are substantial. Since we’re on the subject, be sure to avoid the sea otter protected areas along the Monterey and Santa Cruz coast below 1000 ft. NOAA grabbed that airspace. Last I checked, the fine...

I have different pads (and drones) for different missions. The lightweight pads get blown around by the rotor wash unless staked down. The homemade plywood pad works best for me.

Good point. Keep in mind, though, that FAR 91.119 d allows helicopters, powered parachutes, and weight-shift control aircraft to operate ar less than minimum altitudes.

The small ones are for flying around the house. Makes the cat nervous.

Also, try Avare. It’s free and offers updated charts and GPS positioning. I use it on my Android as a spare nav source in the cockpit.