US No Fly Zones map

You'll find this same map on the Hover app that has been discussed on this forum, and it is also up to date.
 
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Notice that the DJI map pertains only to Class A and B airports. A lot of busy Class C airports (at least in California) are not on the DJI map, meaning a responsible pilot would probably be well advised to regard them as Class B for height and distance limitations, even though the DJI No Fly Zone firmware won't give you warning about them.
 
What happens if you take off in an open area and then try to fly into a no fly zone?

I'm asking because I just checked this map for a location I plan on vacationing and a particular flight I was hoping to make to take video and pictures.
The area where I'll be staying is just outside a large airport no fly zone. (Lake Tahoe) Ground level is ~7500ft
The specific location I wanted to take video from is a small peak around 600ft higher and about 1500-2000 ft away from where I plan to take off.
That peak is just barely inside the no fly zone circle.

(Update: It looks like Lake Tahoe airport isn't included in the DJI no fly zone list, but my question still stands regarding what happens if...)

The no fly zone is a very large circle so we're still pretty far away from the airport.
I know from experience we don't have any overhead traffic. We're not on the approach or takeoff vectors.
I addition, I don't plan on flying more than ~60 feet above ground level.

I'm just worried that even though I'll only be ~60 feet above ground level at that point, since my takeoff location is ~600 feet below, it's going to consider me to be 600 feet high and enforce the low ceiling in proximity to an airport.
Assuming I can take off, what is the Phantom behavior when approaching a no fly zone?
Is it just like hitting your range limit and it just stops moving forward but stays outside the fence?
Or will it gradually descend as I approach or cross the fence?
Or will it do the unthinkable and land in place which would be disastrous since it will be on a steep slope and could be unreachable.
Does it display a warning on screen?

I've flown up to ~2500 feet away before and LoS visibility shouldn't be a problem here. I've never yet ascended more than 300ft but I don't think 600ft should be a problem here.
Nevertheless I may hike in some distance to reduce the range to the peak and the altitude gain.
I'm also concerned about wind at or near the ridge creating updrafts, downdrafts or other turbulence.
In the end it may be too risky of a flight but the view from up there is amazing.
 
cahutch said:
What happens if you take off in an open area and then try to fly into a no fly zone?
(Update: It looks like Lake Tahoe airport isn't included in the DJI no fly zone list, but my question still stands regarding what happens if...)

I'm just worried that even though I'll only be ~60 feet above ground level at that point, since my takeoff location is ~600 feet below, it's going to consider me to be 600 feet high and enforce the low ceiling in proximity to an airport.
If the area is not on the DJI no-fly map, there is no way your Phantom would have any idea it's near an airport and no way it would affect your ability to fly.

cahutch said:
I'm also concerned about wind at or near the ridge creating updrafts, downdrafts or other turbulence.
In the end it may be too risky
Your Phantom can easily deal with 20 knot winds. It has to be very windy before it is a problem.
 
Meta4 said:
If the area is not on the DJI no-fly map, there is no way your Phantom would have any idea it's near an airport and no way it would affect your ability to fly.
But I'm still interested in what happens when/if you do stray into a no fly zone.

Meta4 said:
Your Phantom can easily deal with 20 knot winds. It has to be very windy before it is a problem.
Not if it's a strong downdraft and I'm only 20-60 feet off the ground. The phantom will have reduced lift at that altitude also.
 
There were complaints about noise from multiple quadcopters flying in popular National Parks. And then a German tourist crashed his into the the Great Prismatic Spring at Yellowstone.
 
cahutch said:
Meta4 said:
If the area is not on the DJI no-fly map, there is no way your Phantom would have any idea it's near an airport and no way it would affect your ability to fly.
But I'm still interested in what happens when/if you do stray into a no fly zone.

Meta4 said:
Your Phantom can easily deal with 20 knot winds. It has to be very windy before it is a problem.
Not if it's a strong downdraft and I'm only 20-60 feet off the ground. The phantom will have reduced lift at that altitude also.

It will auto land once it's inside the no fly zone. Dji said it itself, might have to get on the runway to get your bird back
 
packetlos said:
America is weird, national parks are exactly the type of place you would want to fly so why ban quads??

The crash into Grand Prismatic Springs was mentioned, as well as the numerous noise complaints. There were also instances of quads used to chase Bighorn Sheep at Zions, a crash into Yellowstone Lake that barely missed a group of boaters, and a ceremony in the amphitheater at Mount Rushmore that some idiot thought he would buzz numerous times, to mention of few of the various other instances.

I don't want my ground based photos of Yosemite to be ruined by quads in my field of view, nor the beauty of a sunset viewed from Delicate Arch to be marred by drones flying through the arch and the noise they produce. Nor do I want to stand at an overlook above Bryce canyon and see a crashed Phantom or two stuck on top of the hoodoos until erosion brings them down.

I've been enjoying our NPs for my entire life, and that enjoyment hasn't been lessened by me not being able to fly my Phantom in them.
 
who said:
It will auto land once it's inside the no fly zone. Dji said it itself, might have to get on the runway to get your bird back
Thanks for the info Who. I won't be flying anywhere near the runway but the restricted zone can extend 5 miles away which is just where I was planning to fly..

Fortunately this is academic since I determined the airport in question is neither Category A or B.
But in the interest of science, If it were category A and I entered the edge of the restricted altitude zone while in the mountains at ~1200ft altitude above the airport but only a couple hundred feet above ground level where I'm at, what would happen?
Is the restricted altitude calculated from the ground level of the airport or the ground level of the phantom's home point?

I found some relevant info in the Phantom 2 Vision + User manual, V1.8, Page 31
It Says "If the phantom enters the restricted area in non-GPS mode, and GPS mode activates, the Phantom will automatically descend to land"
That is, if you happened to get into the zone while in Atti mode or with insufficient GPS satellite reception. Once inside, if GPS mode activates, it will land automatically while still allowing you to control it laterally.
It doesn't say what happens if you attempt to enter while in GPS mode the whole time.
Will it hit a wall, or will it happily fly inside the zone and auto land? I would expect it to hit a wall but I have no way to test, so I have to assume the latter.

There is a warning on screen at least 320 feet before reaching the restricted zone. That's good to know.

Of course I'm a safe flyer and would never consider flying close to an airport. In this case however I was tempted because I'll be in a wilderness area in the mountains 5 miles from the airport and 1200 feet above it.
I've decided that even though the airport is not included in the DJI no fly zone database, the flight will be generally unsafe due to the range and altitude required and from personal experience of the winds that blow over that ridge.

Also note, DJI only enforces no fly zones around airports and D.C.
There are no enforced no fly zones in the National Parks
 
cahutch said:
But in the interest of science, If it were category A and I entered the edge of the restricted altitude zone while in the mountains at ~1200ft altitude above the airport but only a couple hundred feet above ground level where I'm at, what would happen?
Is the restricted altitude calculated from the ground level of the airport or the ground level of the phantom's home point?

This is an interesting conundrum. The Phantom only knows the barometric altitude but the database will contain the airport ground level. I don't know where I got this, but it is from DJI when they were explaining the no-fly zone:

DJI-Cat-A-Zone-480x246.jpg


From DJI's explanation, as you get closer to the airport the Phantom will descend to the blue zone until you get 1.5 miles from the airport then it will land wherever the Phantom is. This is kind of like one of Einstein's mind games... The airport elevation is irrelevant. When you take off, the Phantom starts at zero feet, and in the database the center of the airport is considered zero feet. So to the Phantom, your zero feet is the same as the airport's zero feet. The advantage is yours.

Do a Google Search on the image and you will find it in other articles.
 

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