CarlJ said:
Oh come on! You may not like the tone of the post, but I see everyone attacking the poster, and not what he's said. The reason you're not attacking what he said is because there's an element of truth to it. There is an anti-establishment sentiment around here with more than a few members.
Now I can agree to disagree, but let's own up to who we are...
I was actually trying to just make a small joke and not foster this thread becoming... well, basically what it's become now. If anyone gets all bitchy and says "please ban me" I support them being taken at their word.
My issue IS with law enforcement when they act the way they're acting with the situation that started this thread (the GWB drone duo). The police claim of "reckless endangerment" with wild, physically impossible feats such as the Phantom climbing 2000 feet in seconds, or moving towards their helicopter in an aggressive manner (when multiple sources have shown otherwise) are so typical of their ignorance and fabricating things to justify/press charges.
ianwood I totally respect you and your knowledge around here but I respectfully disagree with your recent post. The drones were NOT in controlled airspace look up the East River Exclusion Zone, which they were in if they were at the GWB which they say they weren't anyway and they did NOT have FPV which lends credibility to their claims that they were at low altitude with line of sight, backed up by many eyewitnesses. The police pilots made errors about the size, altitude, and movement of the Phantoms (probably due to nighttime conditions previously covered in this thread) and instead of just dropping it and going somewhere else to go after real criminals (you can't tell me there was no other serious crime going on in NYC at that time that could have used police helicopter assistance) they chased the Phantoms, stuck around and directed yet more (ground) cops who could have been going after real criminals and pressed charges against the 2 drone guys... and it is the chopper pilots pressing the charge.
We have to remember this entire situation is about one thing: the police helicopter pilots claiming that the drone pilots operated while "evincing wanton and reckless conduct towards unspecified persons by reason of a depraved indifference to human life in general." That sound like a couple guys buzzing their Phantom around their neighborhood?
sorryimnotsorry but this situation reeks of police "I own this airspace and I'm going to bully you out of it" (when of course they don't) and I have no problem standing up for my and others' rights... especially in this situation because it could have easily been me flying my Phantom around the city. for the record I stick to parks and rivers mostly and pretty much never fly over streets or sidewalks... folks around here who know me know I'm one of the first to jump on people who fly irresponsibly, especially over crowds and people.
it isn't directly related, but everyone in the US should read this article and act before we get our hobby regulated out of legality.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/gregory...t-regarding-faa-rules-that-may-limit-flights/ because if this **** goes through and they DO redefine RC/hobby aircraft and make all sorts of exceptions for quads (making them illegal when other RC hobby aircraft are not) then the flights themselves DO become illegal and I will absolutely, begrudgingly stfu and comply with the law.