Dallas Area Phantom 2 Pilot

gword256 said:
Did any of you buy your Phantom locally? I don't see any dealers in the DFW area except down towards Austin.

I've been practicing with some smaller ones and want to get a Phantom soon.

Aero hobbies in Lewisville, but they have trouble keeping them in stock.
 
Hey phantom 2 h33d pilot here. Me and a buddy do aerial work in the dfw area and live in Dallas tx. Would love to meet up with any phantom pilots and fly! Let me know! Here's some of our work. This is a link to our our promotional video. Alittle outdated but whatever http://youtu.be/P42rBu-4uDg
 
Get a DFW Terminal Area Map and know where you can/should fly -- otherwise, you're just screwing it up for everyone! (Las Colinas is very close to active runways . . .)
 
Hi guys, have a non vision phantom here with black pearl immersionrc looking to meet up and fly. I'm in the Arlington area but work in Lewisville, let me know!
 
Hello guy's, Im new to the drone world and in the SE Fort Worth area. I have a P3 professional coming in tomorrow. Anyone still meet up around here? Also new to Texas need to find a place safe to fly.
 
Hello guy's, Im new to the drone world and in the SE Fort Worth area. I have a P3 professional coming in tomorrow. Anyone still meet up around here? Also new to Texas need to find a place safe to fly.


Hello I'm Braxton. I live in the downtown dallas area and always down to fly. I know some good areas around here just hit me up.
 
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I'm in Granbury (about 40 miles SouthWest of Ft Worth) and got my Phantom 3 Professional a couple of weeks ago. I've been flying at a nearby nature area because it's a public area and looking at the Texas drone law it is legal to fly and film over public spaces. Has anyone in Texas looked at the drone law? It looks like you better have permission from all your neighbors before you fly your drone over your neighborhood while filming.

Here is what I found on the current Texas drone law:
====================================================
(reprinted from the EastBay RC blog)

Here's my brief summary and analysis of the Texas "Drone Law".

There's been a lot of odd ("botched") reporting on this, so I'm hoping that this will help clear things up a bit. Why it's so difficult for reporters to actually read five pages of surprisingly clearly written text is beyond me. It took me about two hours to go through and type this up. NY Times, give me a call!

Later I'll do the same for the California bill (much less clearly written!). As always, leave me some comment or corrections if you've got them!

I've highlighted some important parts of the text concerning civilian or hobbyist use. Scan down and read those and you'll have a reasonable idea of how the law applies.

If you're flying over public property, private property with permission of the owner, or not intending to surveil a particular person, you're good to fly by this law.

The bill addresses what kind of pictures/video may be captured from an unmanned aerial vehicle. It adds chapter 423 to the Texas state code.

423.001 -- defining an "image". (basically what you expect: video/pictures, along with all-encompassing catch-alls covering sound, smell, and the entire electromagnetic spectrum.)

423.002 -- Nonapplicability.
(this is the important part. anything noted here is not covered by the law.)

(A) It is legal to capture an image by an unmanned aircraft if:

(1) for University research.
(2) at a designated test site or test range.
(3) by the military.
(4) by a satellite for purposes of mapping.
(5) by electric or natural gas utility, for:
(a) facilities maintenance
(b) facilities inspection
(c) maintaining clearances on easements
(d) routing and siting services
(6) with the consent of the property owner or legal resident.
(7) pursuant to a search/arrest warrant.
(8) by law enforcement, for:
(a) immediate pursuit of a non-misdemeanor criminal suspect
(b) documenting a non-misdemeanor crime scene
(c) investing serious accident scenes
(d) missing person search
(e) life-threatening tactical operation
(f) private property generally open to the public and policed.
(9) by state/local law enforcement, for:
(a) surveying a potential state of emergency scene
(b) preserving public safety during a legal state of emergency
(c) conducting routine air quality sampling
(10) at the scene or suspected scene of a HazMat spill.
(11) fire suppression.
(12) rescuing a person whose life is in danger.
(13) real estate broker, if there is no identifiable person in image.
(14) within 25 miles of the U.S. border.
(15) less than 8 ft altitude, with normal camera.
(16) on public property, and people on public property.
(17) inspecting pipelines and related facilities, but not for surveillance.
(18) oil pipeline safety and rig protection.
(19) port authority surveillance and protection.

(B) doesn't apply to manufacturing or selling unmanned aircraft.

423.003 OFFENSE: ILLEGAL USE OF UNMANNED AIRCRAFT TO CAPTURE IMAGE

(A) Illegal to to use unmanned aircraft to capture an image of a person or private property with the intent to conduct surveillance of that person or property.

(B) class C misdemeanor

(C) defense if the person has destroyed the image:
(1) as soon as the person knows the image was captured in violation, and
(2) without distributing to image.

(D) "intent" is as per penal code section 6.03

423.004 OFFENSE: USE OF IMAGE

(A) It's an offense if the person:
(1) captures the image as per 003 above.
(2) possesses, uses or distributes the image

(B) possession is a class C misdemeanor. disclosure, etc, class B.

(C) each image is a separate offense.

(D) it's a defense if you destroy an image as soon as you know it's a violation.

(E) it's a defense if you stop disclosing as soon as you know it's a violation.

423.005 ILLEGALLY OR INCIDENTALLY CAPTURED IMAGES NOT SUBJECT TO DISCLOSURE

(A) No illegal image as specified above can be used in court,
(B) except to prove a violation of this law.

423.006 CIVIL ACTION

(A) an owner or tenant of a property can bring a civil action to:
(1) prevent a violation of 003 or 004.
(2) recover a civil penalty of
(a) $5,000 per episode (for all images)
(b) $10,000 per episode if distributed
(3) recover actual damages if the person displays with malice.

(B,C,D) details on bringing civil action.
(F) two year time limit to bring civil action.

423.007. RULES FOR USE BY LAW ENFORCEMENT

DPS shall adopt rules and guidelines for law enforcement use.

423.008 REPORTING BY LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY

Law enforcement agencies must report unmanned aircraft use, cost, etc.
Details as to reports. Details as to when this law takes effect.
 
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I'm in Granbury (about 40 miles SouthWest of Ft Worth) and got my Phantom 3 Professional a couple of weeks ago. I've been flying at a nearby nature area because it's a public area and looking at the Texas drone law it is legal to fly and film over public spaces. Has anyone in Texas looked at the drone law? It looks like you better have permission from all your neighbors before you fly your drone over your neighborhood while filming.

Here is what I found on the current Texas drone law:
====================================================
(reprinted from the EastBay RC blog)

Here's my brief summary and analysis of the Texas "Drone Law".

There's been a lot of odd ("botched") reporting on this, so I'm hoping that this will help clear things up a bit. Why it's so difficult for reporters to actually read five pages of surprisingly clearly written text is beyond me. It took me about two hours to go through and type this up. NY Times, give me a call!

Later I'll do the same for the California bill (much less clearly written!). As always, leave me some comment or corrections if you've got them!

I've highlighted some important parts of the text concerning civilian or hobbyist use. Scan down and read those and you'll have a reasonable idea of how the law applies.

If you're flying over public property, private property with permission of the owner, or not intending to surveil a particular person, you're good to fly by this law.

The bill addresses what kind of pictures/video may be captured from an unmanned aerial vehicle. It adds chapter 423 to the Texas state code.

423.001 -- defining an "image". (basically what you expect: video/pictures, along with all-encompassing catch-alls covering sound, smell, and the entire electromagnetic spectrum.)

423.002 -- Nonapplicability.
(this is the important part. anything noted here is not covered by the law.)

(A) It is legal to capture an image by an unmanned aircraft if:

(1) for University research.
(2) at a designated test site or test range.
(3) by the military.
(4) by a satellite for purposes of mapping.
(5) by electric or natural gas utility, for:
(a) facilities maintenance
(b) facilities inspection
(c) maintaining clearances on easements
(d) routing and siting services
(6) with the consent of the property owner or legal resident.
(7) pursuant to a search/arrest warrant.
(8) by law enforcement, for:
(a) immediate pursuit of a non-misdemeanor criminal suspect
(b) documenting a non-misdemeanor crime scene
(c) investing serious accident scenes
(d) missing person search
(e) life-threatening tactical operation
(f) private property generally open to the public and policed.
(9) by state/local law enforcement, for:
(a) surveying a potential state of emergency scene
(b) preserving public safety during a legal state of emergency
(c) conducting routine air quality sampling
(10) at the scene or suspected scene of a HazMat spill.
(11) fire suppression.
(12) rescuing a person whose life is in danger.
(13) real estate broker, if there is no identifiable person in image.
(14) within 25 miles of the U.S. border.
(15) less than 8 ft altitude, with normal camera.
(16) on public property, and people on public property.
(17) inspecting pipelines and related facilities, but not for surveillance.
(18) oil pipeline safety and rig protection.
(19) port authority surveillance and protection.

(B) doesn't apply to manufacturing or selling unmanned aircraft.

423.003 OFFENSE: ILLEGAL USE OF UNMANNED AIRCRAFT TO CAPTURE IMAGE

(A) Illegal to to use unmanned aircraft to capture an image of a person or private property with the intent to conduct surveillance of that person or property.

(B) class C misdemeanor

(C) defense if the person has destroyed the image:
(1) as soon as the person knows the image was captured in violation, and
(2) without distributing to image.


(D) "intent" is as per penal code section 6.03

423.004 OFFENSE: USE OF IMAGE

(A) It's an offense if the person:
(1) captures the image as per 003 above.
(2) possesses, uses or distributes the image

(B) possession is a class C misdemeanor. disclosure, etc, class B.

(C) each image is a separate offense.

(D) it's a defense if you destroy an image as soon as you know it's a violation.

(E) it's a defense if you stop disclosing as soon as you know it's a violation.

423.005 ILLEGALLY OR INCIDENTALLY CAPTURED IMAGES NOT SUBJECT TO DISCLOSURE

(A) No illegal image as specified above can be used in court,
(B) except to prove a violation of this law.

423.006 CIVIL ACTION

(A) an owner or tenant of a property can bring a civil action to:
(1) prevent a violation of 003 or 004.
(2) recover a civil penalty of
(a) $5,000 per episode (for all images)
(b) $10,000 per episode if distributed
(3) recover actual damages if the person displays with malice.

(B,C,D) details on bringing civil action.
(F) two year time limit to bring civil action.

423.007. RULES FOR USE BY LAW ENFORCEMENT

DPS shall adopt rules and guidelines for law enforcement use.

423.008 REPORTING BY LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY

Law enforcement agencies must report unmanned aircraft use, cost, etc.
Details as to reports. Details as to when this law takes effect.
I'm in Granbury (about 40 miles SouthWest of Ft Worth) and got my Phantom 3 Professional a couple of weeks ago. I've been flying at a nearby nature area because it's a public area and looking at the Texas drone law it is legal to fly and film over public spaces. Has anyone in Texas looked at the drone law? It looks like you better have permission from all your neighbors before you fly your drone over your neighborhood while filming.

Here is what I found on the current Texas drone law:
====================================================
(reprinted from the EastBay RC blog)

Here's my brief summary and analysis of the Texas "Drone Law".

There's been a lot of odd ("botched") reporting on this, so I'm hoping that this will help clear things up a bit. Why it's so difficult for reporters to actually read five pages of surprisingly clearly written text is beyond me. It took me about two hours to go through and type this up. NY Times, give me a call!

Later I'll do the same for the California bill (much less clearly written!). As always, leave me some comment or corrections if you've got them!

I've highlighted some important parts of the text concerning civilian or hobbyist use. Scan down and read those and you'll have a reasonable idea of how the law applies.

If you're flying over public property, private property with permission of the owner, or not intending to surveil a particular person, you're good to fly by this law.

The bill addresses what kind of pictures/video may be captured from an unmanned aerial vehicle. It adds chapter 423 to the Texas state code.

423.001 -- defining an "image". (basically what you expect: video/pictures, along with all-encompassing catch-alls covering sound, smell, and the entire electromagnetic spectrum.)

423.002 -- Nonapplicability.
(this is the important part. anything noted here is not covered by the law.)

(A) It is legal to capture an image by an unmanned aircraft if:

(1) for University research.
(2) at a designated test site or test range.
(3) by the military.
(4) by a satellite for purposes of mapping.
(5) by electric or natural gas utility, for:
(a) facilities maintenance
(b) facilities inspection
(c) maintaining clearances on easements
(d) routing and siting services
(6) with the consent of the property owner or legal resident.
(7) pursuant to a search/arrest warrant.
(8) by law enforcement, for:
(a) immediate pursuit of a non-misdemeanor criminal suspect
(b) documenting a non-misdemeanor crime scene
(c) investing serious accident scenes
(d) missing person search
(e) life-threatening tactical operation
(f) private property generally open to the public and policed.
(9) by state/local law enforcement, for:
(a) surveying a potential state of emergency scene
(b) preserving public safety during a legal state of emergency
(c) conducting routine air quality sampling
(10) at the scene or suspected scene of a HazMat spill.
(11) fire suppression.
(12) rescuing a person whose life is in danger.
(13) real estate broker, if there is no identifiable person in image.
(14) within 25 miles of the U.S. border.
(15) less than 8 ft altitude, with normal camera.
(16) on public property, and people on public property.
(17) inspecting pipelines and related facilities, but not for surveillance.
(18) oil pipeline safety and rig protection.
(19) port authority surveillance and protection.

(B) doesn't apply to manufacturing or selling unmanned aircraft.

423.003 OFFENSE: ILLEGAL USE OF UNMANNED AIRCRAFT TO CAPTURE IMAGE

(A) Illegal to to use unmanned aircraft to capture an image of a person or private property with the intent to conduct surveillance of that person or property.

(B) class C misdemeanor

(C) defense if the person has destroyed the image:
(1) as soon as the person knows the image was captured in violation, and
(2) without distributing to image.


(D) "intent" is as per penal code section 6.03

423.004 OFFENSE: USE OF IMAGE

(A) It's an offense if the person:
(1) captures the image as per 003 above.
(2) possesses, uses or distributes the image

(B) possession is a class C misdemeanor. disclosure, etc, class B.

(C) each image is a separate offense.

(D) it's a defense if you destroy an image as soon as you know it's a violation.

(E) it's a defense if you stop disclosing as soon as you know it's a violation.

423.005 ILLEGALLY OR INCIDENTALLY CAPTURED IMAGES NOT SUBJECT TO DISCLOSURE

(A) No illegal image as specified above can be used in court,
(B) except to prove a violation of this law.

423.006 CIVIL ACTION

(A) an owner or tenant of a property can bring a civil action to:
(1) prevent a violation of 003 or 004.
(2) recover a civil penalty of
(a) $5,000 per episode (for all images)
(b) $10,000 per episode if distributed
(3) recover actual damages if the person displays with malice.

(B,C,D) details on bringing civil action.
(F) two year time limit to bring civil action.

423.007. RULES FOR USE BY LAW ENFORCEMENT

DPS shall adopt rules and guidelines for law enforcement use.

423.008 REPORTING BY LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY

Law enforcement agencies must report unmanned aircraft use, cost, etc.
Details as to reports. Details as to when this law takes effect.
So if I take off from my back yard but don't record or take pictures, I can fly to the public park 1/2 a mile away over the neighborhood without asking?
 
So if I take off from my back yard but don't record or take pictures, I can fly to the public park 1/2 a mile away over the neighborhood without asking?
I'm no lawyer, but it seems that the biggest issue is taking pictures or video of other people or their private property. Notice they say you can fly your drone in your own back yard as long as you're not flying higher then eight feet above the ground. The eight feet is typical of the height of neighborhood privacy fences. So it seems they don't care about flying around in your own yard as long as the camera can't see above eight feet which protects your neighbors privacy.

But what if your neighbors have chain link fences? You could be flying no higher then eight feet and still view your neighbors property thru their chain link fence?

The other big issue is how they interpret "intent to conduct surveillance of that person or property". If you're filming the area you're flying over like in your neighborhood, is that different then hovering over a particular home or person and filming the property or persons on that property?

What does the law consider conducting surveillance of a person or property? Does just taking a video of a wide area you're flying over meet the requirements for surveillance? How about while flying over a park or nature area while filming and you capture images of a private home outside of the park while panning the camera around?

These are just questions I had about the Texas drone laws and wondered if anyone else had any first hand experience with the Texas drone laws or perhaps a lawyer you could answer the questions.
 
Yeah I also would like to know this stuff. Maybe you should copy what you just wrote and make your own post and hope someone from Texas can answer it.

I'm just a dumb truck driver trying to enjoy this new hobby too.
 
Yeah I also would like to know this stuff. Maybe you should copy what you just wrote and make your own post and hope someone from Texas can answer it.

I'm just a dumb truck driver trying to enjoy this new hobby too.

I found a couple of threads about the new Texas drone laws but so far there are several different opinions of what we can and can't do.

Taking pictures and or filming of private property without permission can be a problem, especially if you post the videos online. The the fines can get pretty heavy. Some people are saying as long as they are not conducting surveillance then everything is fine.

We may have to wait and see until some unlucky person gets caught posting their video online and get a citation or two and fights it out in court to see how the Texas drone law holds up in court.

For now I'll be flying over public property and making sure my neighbors are alright with me flying from my own property and over their property.
 
Yeah I also would like to know this stuff. Maybe you should copy what you just wrote and make your own post and hope someone from Texas can answer it.

I'm just a dumb truck driver trying to enjoy this new hobby too.

I did some more research on the Texas drone laws and found this video being promoted on another Phantom site which explains the Texas drone law.

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At about 2.56 in the video, they explain the Texas drone law and specifically mention if was designed to deter video surveillance of people and or private property. Take a look and see what you think.
 
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I'm in Granbury as well and I fly my P3P around/over the lake, parks and in my neighborhood. Not a word has been said to me other than, "whoa! Is that a drone?" Lol. My neighbors are cool and the police have even stopped and watched while I flew at the beach/ lake area. No issues so far.
 
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I'm in Granbury as well and I fly my P3P around/over the lake, parks and in my neighborhood. Not a word has been said to me other than, "whoa! Is that a drone?" Lol. My neighbors are cool and the police have even stopped and watched while I flew at the beach/ lake area. No issues so far.

I live right across the lake from the beach and have been wanting to fly around over the lake and get some pictures of our property and then fly out to the boardwalk and get some pictures there as well. I fly at the Acton Nature Trail area because it's a large area without any obstacles like big trees or buildings.

I've flown my P3P less then a dozen flights so far and want to get more proficient before I try flying over the lake. My property has a few antennas and guy wires for my ham radio antennas and I don't want to take a chance of running into a antenna or guy wire.
 

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