The Coming Death of the Drone Hobby

[Melvoid]

Uuummmm I'll put a cam on me t,rex and still buzz around but cant see drones dying out,yes scary thought though, they would have to introduce a buy back sceme of sorts if they want my drones

When quadcopters are outlawed, only outlaws will have quadcopters.

 

[AntDX316]

I remember when the little quad copters first came out. Yes we called them quad copters back then. Quad meaning four motors and they flew like a helicopter. Unlike our model aircraft they could fly in the house and all over the place. Then they put cameras on them, better stability and up to the present day, able to fly great distances.
The turmoil all started when a lady in her fenced back yard, sun bathing nude spotted a little drone flying by. omg she said to her husband what is that? "Just a little drone my dear and they have cameras on them now I hear." That started it all.
The rumors started to fly. Drones hitting aircraft. Drones spying on their neighbors. Only sick perv people fly drones. Regulate them out of the sky!
Greedy governments around the world jumped on the wagon. They spotted a chance to make an extra buck with all kinds of fees, and tests and anything else they could think of to make money. They hired hundreds of people to police the land. Because government, unlike business people knows nothing about running a business. All government knows is politics and they usually mess that up but then they have the tax payer to bail them out.

Most hobbyists I know, like me, over the years have supported the hobby, into the thousands of dollars with some beautiful Drones as they now call them. Our hobby has inspired many businesses to start up. Starting up a business is not easy. But alas, regulators around the world, in their greed, are already killing sales, and people are now struggling to keep their businesses going. Good old DJI has made a little quad copter under this 250 gram limit which has kept the hobby going for a little bit longer, but government will soon change that for no other reason but to steal more from the people.

I see people on line trying hard to save the hobby, and praise them for the effort. But it will not work, because it is the business people and the buyers who keep the hobby going as in any venture. There is only one way to possibly save our hobby. I said hobby, because the Commercial business of drones will stay untouched because the lady knows if they fly over her back yard pool, they will be too busy to look down and too high no one will care anyway. Why don't they just ban bathing or sunning nude in your back yard? hmmmm. The inspectors would have a ball ha ha tongue in cheek.

Just don't fly your drones any more. Lets say for a year. What would happen. If you don't fly there is no reason to register. Business is going to close because of no new sales. The greedy regulators who have spent millions maybe billions in preparation, are going to have to shut down. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know the rest of the story.

Maybe after a year or so of flying your stuff in the basement. Looking at your investment every day. Hugging it a little bit maybe. Just maybe things will change. Attitudes might change. The lady in her back yard will be to old and wrinkled to bath nude any more. lol. The greedy regulators may think twice about starting up again. I know this is wish full thinking but there may be enough people who will keep the regulators going just because people are hard to convince overall. Our hobby will probably die unless they come out with a drone the size of a fly that can go miles and miles using FPV. As the old expression says, "Out of sight out of mind."

Hobby, some people have made money off the equipment they bought making some of the drones free.

 

[Hendricks]

Here, in Canada, I operate a drone business that does special events, real estate, land development, and personal projects.
Here, I feel the Transport Canada Unmanned Aerial Vehicle(UAV) regulations have been good for those of us who fly our drones legally.

Those individuals who went to Best Buy and purchased a quadcopter and wanted to just go fly it have been scared off with threats of $3,000 fines.
So, the recreational aspect of our hobby has taken a hit. However, for people who purchased a drone and took the Basic Drone Operations course and wrote and passed the exam, these people are able to fly their drones within guidelines.

Those people wanting to do more with their drones, like having a business, are able to do so provided they take Transport Canada's 'Advanced Drone Pilot' certification.
This involves taking a course, writing a 1 hour exam with 50 multiple choice questions spanning across 9 subject areas.
You must achieve a mark of 80% to pass.

Successfully passing this exam is only Part A of the process.

Part B involves you doing a flight test supervised by a Transport Canada examiner who will evaluate your flight performance.
Areas considered: Flight Planning, Weather, Safety Procedures, Communications, Drone Flight Dynamics, Navigation, Post Flight Evaluation.

A successful flight examination then will allow you to apply for an ' Advanced Drone Pilot's ' certificate.

In the end, those of us who have gone through the process have been rewarded and are legally able to operate our drones and do more with our aircraft than those with a Basic certification.

The reality is that those people who were not willing to 'be professional about it' have dropped out of the hobby.
So be it.

You need a license to operate a vehicle or a watercraft, snow mobile, or ATV, so why should drones be any different?
Drones flying near people, vehicles, buildings, ships, and animals present a safety risk and drone operators need to be properly certified.
Just like anything else.

If the numbers of those involved with drones have decreased because of official guidelines, that's OK.

 

[lasersbee]

Totally disagree...
You are a business and require liability insurance and a
business standard to operate.

We are hobbyists and don't require the same standards.
I have been in the RC model Hobby for over 50 years and
am a Member of MAAC for over 35 years. I pilot Aircraft,
Drones, Cars, Boats and Robots. Most of which are hand
built from scratch.

I have yet to see serious injury or death caused by Drones.
You on the other hand because of you 'Advanced license"
is more likely to have an unforeseen accident while flying
near people and buildings than I would flying in and over
a grassy field.

And yes... I hold a Basic Pilot's license here in Canada.
I don't want to do business with my fun time Hobby.

Jerry

 

[AntDX316]

The drone hobby isn't going away. You can still fly and not get detected. As long as people don't care the only thing that should be of concern is maintenance. The aerial platform of data acquirement is just too good and if something were to go wrong there is still a high chance of it hitting nothing but a tree or the ground with nothing there.

Especially with this coronavirus going on, there should be no worry.

 

[umanbean]

The Coming Death of the Drone Hobby? No

The Coming Regulation of the Drone Hobby (to hopefully help curb idiotic and irresponsible behavior)? Yes