Article on 24 FAA fines for drone mishaps or misuse

[CenLA]

The FAA Gave Us a List of Every Drone Pilot Who Has Ever Been Fined
VICE

Lots of people have been fined for flying drones when they pose a threat to those on the ground or aircraft in the sky. However, the punishments levied by the US government against people who fly drones appear to be mostly arbitrary: They range between $400 and $5,500 (with one outlier at $1.9 million), the cases are almost entirely concentrated on the East Coast, and the specific wording and regulations the Federal Aviation Administration cites are inconsistent, according to enforcement letters

The FAA Gave Us a List of Every Drone Pilot Who Has Ever Been Fined

 

[Morgas Resnak]

Good for them, and they should have been fined. Lots of people flying over stadiums and areas and such.

 

[CenLA]

The two cases about flying near the George Washington Bridge bothered me. I don't know of any restrictions near bridges so this caught my attention. Is it just this bridge in NYC or is flying near, above or below all bridges prohibited somewhere that I am unaware of?

 

[Crawdaddyjc]

Im curious about bridges as well. Where i live there are 2 truss bridges built by army c.o.e in the 50's. They are slated to be replaced within the year. I would like to film them before they are gone.

 

[snerd]

The two cases about flying near the George Washington Bridge bothered me. I don't know of any restrictions near bridges so this caught my attention. Is it just this bridge in NYC or is flying near, above or below all bridges prohibited somewhere that I am unaware of?

Power utilities and National landmarks are usually discouraged from flying over. I think they consider that bridge a landmark.

 

[AJAX-14]

It isn't the bridge. Read the FAA's reports. In the case you reference, the pilot operated his UAS in restricted (Class B) airspace controlled by the FAA without prior coordination or continuous communications as required by the FAA Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM). The NY Special Class B airspace (dark blue line) encompasses the entire metro area. In addition to maintaining continuous communications any aircraft within the area must operate a Mode C (Altitude) transponder (lighter magenta line) [see image]. If you're in one of the FAA terminal metro areas, check you local VFR and Sectional charts. (VFR Raster Charts)

All that said, most of the cases report irresponsible operation, crashes and/or near miss incidents. Read some of the reports. I mean really, flying over the Lincoln Memorial... Flying over crowds or densely populated metro areas, crashing onto landmarks or stadiums, or into buildings 30 floors up, just plain stupid behavior. But the near miss with manned aircraft is truly frightening.

 

[Mark The Droner]

The author could have done a little better job. For example, he lists violations in the DC area and provides links, but he didn't bother to inform us that those links are out-dated. The fact is, NOTAM FDC 6/2069, which came out Feb 10th, allows exceptions to the prohibition of UAS's flown in the DC SFRA.

 

[bbfpv]

But the near miss with manned aircraft is truly frightening.

Follow the links for that one. The NYPD pilots lied about the near miss.

 

[Tricky]

It isn't the bridge. Read the FAA's reports. In the case you reference, the pilot operated his UAS in restricted (Class B) airspace controlled by the FAA without prior coordination

I politely disagree: https://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary...9_Unmanned_Aircraft_Operations_in_the_NAS.pdf

But I could be wrong. It's happened before...

 

[AJAX-14]

I politely disagree: https://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary...9_Unmanned_Aircraft_Operations_in_the_NAS.pdf
View attachment 55844
But I could be wrong. It's happened before...

Tricky, I concur entirely with the observation in general airspace operations. But DC is different. I can't claim any expertise, I can only read it at face value. Section 1.C. of 160210 sUAS Ops Within the SFRA / FDC 6/2069 states clearly "UAS OPERATIONS ARE PROHIBITED IN THE DC FRZ." The maps and descriptions of the DC FRZ can be found in the FAA training document for the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area Special Flight Rules (SFRA) and a large map can be found at HERE.

Just glad I don't live there....

 

[Mark The Droner]

You guys are talking about two different things at once. "The bridge" has to do with the NYC area. DC is 200 miles south.

 

[Tricky]

Tricky, I concur entirely with the observation in general airspace operations. But DC is different. I can't claim any expertise, I can only read it at face value. Section 1.C. of 160210 sUAS Ops Within the SFRA / FDC 6/2069 states clearly "UAS OPERATIONS ARE PROHIBITED IN THE DC FRZ." The maps and descriptions of the DC FRZ can be found in the FAA training document for the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area Special Flight Rules (SFRA) and a large map can be found at HERE.

Just glad I don't live there....

Oh boy, my bad...i thought we were talking about the flying near George Washington bridge in New York...?

I totally agree, DC is off limits no matter the airspace classification...and I'm just spewing what little I have read about uas and airspace in general, but only as it relates to the NY metro area, cuz thats where I fly most...Sorry if I totally mislead folks here...

 

[Mark The Droner]

Yes within 15 miles of DC National Airport is off limits. But 15-30 miles of that airport, which is within the DC SFRA, there are exceptions to the rule. And if you fly within the exceptions, all is good.

 

[AJAX-14]

Oh no, that is definitely on me. I guess the bottom line is... know the airspace before flying. The OP article contains images of all the official FAA reports/charges in a dozen metro areas, primarily Manhattan and DC. It just surprises me how many of the violations were just plain stupid. NYC, DC, LA or any other metro area require a little common sense, basic familiarity with the rules, and a lot of caution ...

 

[Tricky]

And even still knowing the airspace, 10 times out of 10 if you come across law enforcement, they will have no clue so...just don't bring attention to yourself, that's how I fly