OK how good is your eyesight ?

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In the UK there is an implied restriction of 400' AGL (or 1000' with exemption) and 500M distance maximum unless you have CAA authorisation for the flight.

The main thrust of that law (article 166 and its summary) is that the pilot (or his spotter if flying with goggles) "must maintain direct, unaided visual contact with the aircraft sufficient to monitor its flight path in relation to other aircraft, persons, vehicles, vessels and structures for the purpose of avoiding collisions".

I flew 400m out at 200', and after about 200m out and I looked down and looked up and .... nothing. I had lost it.

So how far can you guys see ?
No. Really.
 
not as good as when i was a younger fellow-i use binoculars,same way i do when i fly my gliders way way up into the clouds...thermals,gotta love em!
 
Until I got my new FPV setup I thought the craft was miles away when I could barely see it. And if I looked away even for a moment had great difficulty finding it again. Now with FPV and the iOSD mini find in reality it is about 300 metres distant and 40 metres height where it becomes invisible to me! But I do wear what they describe as complex prescription lens!
 
It depends a lot on light levels and backdrop - being the same colour as clouds is not good when looking up but does show reasonably well if there is dark ground behind.
Good point about not being able to see it again if you glance away momentarily, and as you bring it back you hear it but often that almost mis-directs your gaze perhaps due to the sound taking a second to reach you.
I think about 1200 feet out is the limit in good conditions, half that if less than ideal.

With my P1 I did a few experimental runs where I just sent it away until I could barely see it watching intently.
Usually just over 1000 feet when I checked where it had got to on the video after.
 
On my larger Hex around 650 - 700m MAX (allegedly :roll: ) . However, that's black carbon fiber so tends to show up better against the sky. At that distance however we are talking a 'pin prick' in the sky and orientation is impossible visually at that distance.

As for my Phantom around 250m and I'm really struggling !!!
 
nwillitts said:
not as good as when i was a younger fellow-i use binoculars,same way i do when i fly my gliders way way up into the clouds...thermals,gotta love em!

Ouch. I that it was meant to be "unaided visibility". :eek:
 
Thanks for your replies gents. I think I may need to add some super-flashing lights front and back and paint it black :(

Monte55, really pleased you have this one covered :)
 
I have poor eyesight. I've added bright, white LED headlights (front only) to my Phantoms. The small wafer adds little weight. Helpful, but so is having a wife willing to be a spotter. She walks out a little ways in the direction I'm flying and watches the Phantom, while I switch back and forth between the monitor and line of sight.
 
Buk said:
I have poor eyesight. I've added bright, white LED headlights (front only) to my Phantoms. The small wafer adds little weight. Helpful, but so is having a wife willing to be a spotter. She walks out a little ways in the direction I'm flying and watches the Phantom, while I switch back and forth between the monitor and line of sight.

Can you send me a link to this product please. I can see that I could a fortune in time and money experimenting with lighting :(
 
I thought it was humorous when I viewed this topic this ad popped up in the middle of the page :cool:
ezpu9w.jpg


I do always wear my glasses when I fly personally which normally I only wear if I'm driving. For Vision + users some company has developed a magnifier that fits on a sunshade that magnifies your display so you can see it better. I'm not sure of the company name but I've seen it on Demunseed's YouTube channel. I think he uses one.
 
A pair of small binoculars with a head strap might do the trick i have been looking on the net for a pair but so far have not found any .
 
I've tried binoculars but you still have the problem that as soon as your attention is diverted it's incredibly hard to spot again.
Larger magnifications have a quite narrow field of view.
If a second person kept them trained on it - and a tripod would be good - it would work better.
That still doesn't count for the purposes of the guidance/law because you need to be able to see it unaided.
 
4wd said:
I've tried binoculars but you still have the problem that as soon as your attention is diverted it's incredibly hard to spot again.
Larger magnifications have a quite narrow field of view.
If a second person kept them trained on it - and a tripod would be good - it would work better.
That still doesn't count for the purposes of the guidance/law because you need to be able to see it unaided.

Having seen what is happening the Canadian law regarding FPV and LOS, there has to be a better way.

And anyway I am an old fart, and I wear glasses. How is that unaided. I dont believe LOS (in order to satisfy the law) is doable unless you are flying in a way which does not require any FPV in the first place. :cry:
 
Hughie said:
Thanks for your replies gents. I think I may need to add some super-flashing lights front and back and paint it black

For those who have already painted their quads black can i assume this is a step forward in aiding visibility in the sky??

Can you hear the rattle of a ball bearing in an aerosol tin of matt black as you read this :) . . .
 
Black on the underside (for high flying against cloud or sky backdrop) and a signal color like yellow (for low flying against a green/grey backdrop) on the topside works really well for visibility. A bright white headlight certainly helps to determine front from back. But in bright sunlight it is still practically impossible to see where you're quad is heading when over 300m out (I don't wear glasses for distance). In the dark I can see the lights for about 450 m before they hide between the stars.
 
lake_flyer said:
Black on the underside (for high flying against cloud or sky backdrop) and a signal color like yellow (for low flying against a green/grey backdrop) on the topside works really well for visibility. A bright white headlight certainly helps to determine front from back. But in bright sunlight it is still practically impossible to see where you're quad is heading when over 300m out (I don't wear glasses for distance). In the dark I can see the lights for about 450 m before they hide between the stars.

Interesting, thanks for posting. Many of the colour combinations I have seen split front and back and many just paint all one colour. I guess if you go top and bottom (which makes some sense) the key is how you identify one end from the other. Where did you source your light from and how is it powered ?
 
Monte55 said:
I can see the sun....how far is that?

I dismissed that post at first glance but looked back on it and saw it was infact a question, seemingly not related for the author but I'll work with it.

It's about 93 million miles, in relation to how far compared to a P2 max viewable distance well no idea sorry.

For me if I look up and away at any or even a small distance it's gone (and headed for the sun) so the trusty off switch goes on ummm off again.

:)
 
lake_flyer said:
Black on the underside (for high flying against cloud or sky backdrop) and a signal color like yellow (for low flying against a green/grey backdrop) on the topside works really well for visibility. A bright white headlight certainly helps to determine front from back. But in bright sunlight it is still practically impossible to see where you're quad is heading when over 300m out (I don't wear glasses for distance). In the dark I can see the lights for about 450 m before they hide between the stars.

Colours aside, has anyone considered which gives the best effect for longer visibility, gloss or matt ?

(My bet would be matt, but I dont know)

Thanks
 
Hughie said:
lake_flyer said:
Black on the underside (for high flying against cloud or sky backdrop) and a signal color like yellow (for low flying against a green/grey backdrop) on the topside works really well for visibility. A bright white headlight certainly helps to determine front from back. But in bright sunlight it is still practically impossible to see where you're quad is heading when over 300m out (I don't wear glasses for distance). In the dark I can see the lights for about 450 m before they hide between the stars.

Colours aside, has anyone considered which gives the best effect for longer visibility, gloss or matt ?

(My bet would be matt, but I dont know)

Thanks

At any given distance and size colors tend to turn gray. Next time your out for a drive see if you tell what color the oncoming car is at say 250m and it's much larger than a phantom.
 

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