petersachs said:
The FAA has no jurisdiction over indoor flight, so the commercial use "ban" and recklessness (FAR 91.13) don't apply, and FAA could never initiate an enforcement action here.
Regular old state tort law applies.
You're absolutely right, Peter. Reading your reply, then reading my post, I feel pretty stupid. My post does look like I'm saying the FAA will attempt some sort of enforcement, but that was not what I meant. I can't help but feel the FAA will see this scenario as justification for applying broader, more encompassing regulation. If there are people willing to do this indoors, there are people who would do this outdoors, and this thought has the potential to drive regulation. This is about people using these aircraft irresponsibly and risking the well-being and safety of others, and this is what the FAA will want to address. While this particular event is indeed not an FAA issue to take action on, I think the scenario is exactly what the FAA and it's rule making will want to address.
As for the $10,000.00 fine, in today's sue-happy world, I simply think the owner is sitting in a potential situation where a cost of only $10,000.00 would be a very fortunate outcome.
Also, to put myself out there and risk making myself appear even more ignorant, I'll say that in my opinion, I believe RC aircraft, multirotor/sUAS aircraft in particular, have taken a quantum leap in not just technology/flight capability, but in application. On top of that, I think the technology and capabilities are going to see phenomenal increases in the near future, as the companies developing them create new emerging markets which can justify the cost of development. I think sUAS technology, and its commercial applications and the markets they are producing are here to stay. I think these markets and capabilities will have to be governed under much more mainstream aviation regulation. However, I worry that scenarios like the one discussed above will provide public support for regulation that has the potential of almost regulating the "hobby" level of these activities out of existence.