Homeland Security Report about UAV Emerging Risk

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Here is something a friend of mine sent me. He does consulting work for emergency management and preparation. The figures are kind of interesting so I figured I would share this here.
 

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  • DHS OCIA report of analysis Emerging Risk to Infrastructure from UAVs.pdf
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Interesting. This discussion/concern has been ongoing for a few years now. I also believe some of the info in this is wrong/exaggerated.

I will post it here to save others the download hassle...



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Thanks. I was not sure how to add a .pdf to the post.
 
Me too! Those are obviously the military grade UAV's. But the truth is that it can be done. Someone made a device that can bind 6 cell phone data streams together to be able to transmit HD video to news organizations around the world over existing technology without using a satellite feed. Anything can be done.
 
Interesting. This discussion/concern has been ongoing for a few years now. I also believe some of the info in this is wrong/exaggerated.

I will post it here to save others the download hassle...



View attachment 55021

The American government distributing information that may be wrong/exaggerated? My god.. What next? [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23][emoji41]


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Remember an incident can be anything. If a neighbor calls the cops and says you were flying over his house that is an "incident" involving a drone.
 
1300 incidents in 2015. What the hell are they talking about?
The FAA keeps a database of drone incidents which they release to the press to show how serious the threat is.
Most incidents are imaginary drone/UFOs seen by spooked pilots and some are drones observed closer to the ground.
Here are some actual reports from last year's and this year's FAA drone incident database.
The dramatic increase in reports like these shows how serious the potential threat is.
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i-pFJZTtH-XL.jpg
 
Interesting. This discussion/concern has been ongoing for a few years now. I also believe some of the info in this is wrong/exaggerated.
These guys thrive on exaggerating threats. It helps them to justify their existence and budgets every year.
Last year they were suggesting that Phantoms could carry large payloads of explosives.
Why the US Government Is Terrified of Hobbyist Drones
For some reason the bad guys don't seem to think quadcopters are terribly useful though.
It might have something to do with boring facts like very low payload ability and range with a payload and the ready availability of many much more effective devices.
 
These guys thrive on exaggerating threats. It helps them to justify their existence and budgets every year.
Last year they were suggesting that Phantoms could carry large payloads of explosives.
Why the US Government Is Terrified of Hobbyist Drones
For some reason the bad guys don't seem to think quadcopters are terribly useful though.
It might have something to do with boring facts like very low payload ability and range with a payload and the ready availability of many much more effective devices.
After over 30 years as a pilot with a commercial airline, and now flying corporate aircraft, I have NEVER seen a drone or quadcopter on any of my flights. I don't know of any instances when my fellow pilots have seen them either. The only issues I have had flying aircraft have been runway incursions and a few close calls with other aircraft......not drones. Since I still fly jets for a living, I will hold my comment on the FAA at this time. But Meta4, we think alike. [emoji41]


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I laugh at these guys and their descriptions... You can barely tell a tail design on a commercial jet going the other direction at half a mile from the cockpit let alone a 500mm square drone and its markings.
Can you tell colors/hex/quad at half a mile to a mile stationary on the ground with a clear, not cluttered background?
And I thought flight attendants were drama queens...
I work with a bunch of overzealous pilots that love to exaggerate the myth these things are dangerous... Lack of knowledge is the main problem, I doubt a phantom would do anymore damage to a commercial aircraft than a seagull. And there are far less to hit.



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I agree about the descriptions being imperfect. I am NOT a Pilot but have flown a Cessna for about 30 minutes when I was 12. I have also owned a powered parachute for a short time, it was the most fun I have ever had but I sold it to make sure my kids have a father..... But that is another story.
My point is that I can imagine what it would be like to fly a jet or decent prop plane at a fairly fast airspeed and being able to catch more than a blink of an eye glimpse of a tiny drone would be a miracle IMO. In a jet, I would imagine it would be like Dale Earnhart Jr. trying to describe a dragonfly he passed on the Indy track at 200mph. So when I posted the DHS info I knew it was not the most accurate. (Thanks again to LuvMyTJ for reposting it as an image. I should have just saved it as .jpg instead of uploading it.).

The real point to take from this is that the Feds DO SEE A DANGER. Maybe they are exaggerating the risk, but there is some risk. The truth is that I am (pleasantly) surprised that terrorists have not used a UAV as a weapon yet. It probably won't be a Phantom, since they are so locked down and really cannot carry much. My 100w LED light mod weighs 380g total and it is a strain. BUT I can see a terrorist taking a larger home made plane, quad or octo copter designed for say a 10-20lb payload and fitting a dirty bomb to it. If detonated over a stadium it probably wouldn't kill anybody but the stampede would kill several, and the hysteria would be a devastating blow. So let's not hate on "Big Brother" so much for recognizing that there is a fairly new technology that can be disruptive. Even 1 seagull has taken down a plane before. That is why the people on this site self police. We are the first to tell any new hobbyists not to fly near airports, don't hover over your neighbors pool, etc. We are actually on the same side as DHS. But I also fear that they will eventually make it hard for us to enjoy our hobby which I have grown to love so much.
 
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Regulation (over regulation) won't stop evil from using a drone for evil.
I have no problem with companies like DJI controlling my altitude in certain areas etc for the very reasons DHS and the FAA are worried about.
I also have no problem with them reducing the power to our RC units either.
Along with licensing. I'd pay $500-$1500 to be given a certificate to buy a "drone" above a certain weight or configuration in order to fly freely.
I know Americans wouldn't like that though. Ha ha.
This overzealous fear mongering is annoying though. It builds paranoia when in reality the risks are still incredibly low.



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I agree, the risks are low, but we may be looking at more regulation in the future, especially if someone does something pretty bad with one. We are a knee jerk society and after something bad happens we go crazy with new laws and rules.
 
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