One thing that almost always happened though is that the airplane would come up on the radar of a local airport a few miles away so they would vector a plane or helicopter over my way to check it out. These drones must surely be doing the same over there. If so they should be able to figure out roughly from where they are coming from. When they find the first operator they should be able to coral the others. I would think the authorities must already have clues.
Living in NJ, anything is possible. Orson Welle's 1938 Halloween eve radio broadcast " War of the World's " chronicled Martian landings in NJ. Worried citizens across the nation panicked. Of course, large drones overhead are very real and at some point, people are entitled to an explanation.
I don't think ordinary hobbyists could afford drones this large and sophisticated. No worries, the AMA told us a dozen years ago or so that drone flyers would become part of the fold.
According to the FAA it’s against the law to shoot down a drone.
Without discussing what "the authorities" might be doing about it, I am stunned that no one has taken matters into his own hands and shot one of them down.
Brett
Welcome to the "Future".
Brett
I believe everyone is wrong. These are obviously alien craft, just out for a joy ride. Cruisin' about.
I believe everyone is wrong. These are obviously alien craft, just out for a joy ride. Cruisin' about.
These are not toys. They are quite large. There are 100's of reports per night regarding these things. Proximity to Trump National and Picatinny Arsenal seem to be consistently visited.
At what altitude are they flying? Are they within range of 12 gauge No.2 shot or magnum 00 or 000 buck shot? I have some.
Jokes aside, I think everyone should think twice before firing guns in the air trying to hit drones, it's almost certainly illegal and is at least a little bit dangerous.
Without discussing what "the authorities" might be doing about it, I am stunned that no one has taken matters into his own hands and shot one of them down.My thought exactly. Perhaps its a aspect of the mentality of the general population in a given region, in this case the liberal east coast. I suspect that had this situation begun around Bozeman MT, Provo UT or Deer Park WA, that someone would likely have done this very thing a lot earlier on than this.
Brett
My thought exactly. Perhaps its a aspect of the mentality of the general population in a given region, in this case the liberal east coast. I suspect that had this situation begun around Bozeman MT, Provo UT or Deer Park WA, that someone would likely have done this very thing a lot earlier on than this.
Gary
You'd have a long time to think about it after shooting down a govt aircraft.Never said it was either legal or even the right thing to do. But we can pretty much conclude a few things here. First, they are almost certainly not private hobby fliers, as this would appear to involve a lot of organization and planning. We can eliminate corporate ownership as any corporate entity would have long since spoken up about it and apologized. Third, I think we can eliminate likely government activity based on the complete lack of apparent concern for public safety, the amount of media coverage, the interviews with congressional representatives who have no idea what the source of these things is, etc. If it were US gov flying these, given the public concern at this point I would think it likely that someone from Bumbles Bribe-den himself on down, someone would say something to assure the public that everything is fine and they are ours.
It got bidens pardons out of the news cycle.
What an odd coincidence!
Brett
But I thought our military had a way to cause havic with the radio signals.
Back to the shop for me.
At what altitude are they flying? Are they within range of 12 gauge No.2 shot or magnum 00 or 000 buck shot? I have some.500' TO 1000' OR 6 Iron to Driver for me.
Wonder if the AMA will comment.
Wonder if the AMA will comment.
What could they possibly have to offer? Remind everyone to turn on Remote ID if you aren't flying at a FRIA?
De ja vu all over again. So in Texas a drone falls on a young boy- he’s in open heart surgery.
Dave
Huh? Did this happen?
Yes it did. It was a lighted aerial drone display for Christmas done by a drone company that does these shows. They had gotten a special permit from the FAA for the show since the pilots were flying multiple drones each. Several collided and came down on the crowd below. Two or three days ago.
Dave
Semi off topic but...I got the "Small UAS Certificate of Registration" back in 2019 when it looked like we would have to have one. We didn't and I let it expire. Christmas I was presented with a little RC Foamy from my Grandson. I want to fly it for no other reason than he gave it to me. They are sort of fun anyway and I have a lot of RC experience from "back in the day". it looks like a decent motor and esc I might be able to use in a 1/2a size plane after it crashes (they all do eventually).
SO...do I need to renew my "part 107" license? Anybody know? I read that they do not expire but you have to test every two years. I went to the FAA Web site but unfortunately, I only have a Master's degree which is insufficient to navigate the FAA site. How the bloody hell did we let the government make so that you have to take an exam and get a license to play with a kids toy? VD~
Ken
Semi off topic but...I got the "Small UAS Certificate of Registration" back in 2019 when it looked like we would have to have one. [...] SO...do I need to renew my "part 107" license? Anybody know? I read that they do not expire but you have to test every two years. I went to the FAA Web site but unfortunately, I only have a Master's degree which is insufficient to navigate the FAA site. How the bloody hell did we let the government make so that you have to take an exam and get a license to play with a kids toy? VD~ Ken
I saw a news article about the drone company that was involved with the incident in Florida. The FAA has suspended the Part 107 waiver for the drone company. So, there will be no drone show in Dallas on New Years Eve.
In order to justify legislation, the Gov-A-Mint needs some proof of a problem.
Wonder if the AMA will comment.
These events ought to work to the AMA's advantage on the Hill. It's highlighted when we in the aeromodeling community have known all along: FAA regulations are unenforceable.
These events ought to work to the AMA's advantage on the Hill. It's highlighted when we in the aeromodeling community have known all along: FAA regulations are unenforceable.Never tell bureaucrats that their regulations are unenforceable lest they single you out to prove otherwise. VD~
The media is now reporting that the FAA has admitted that the majority of those mystery drones were authorized research flights. They are not saying what kind of research.New President. Trump declassified it.
I wonder if it’s the truth, that the flights were authorized. I also wonder why the FAA took so long.
Whitaker, a former FAA deputy administrator and former executive at United Airlines, was confirmed by the Senate unanimously in 2023, ending nearly 19 months in which the agency had no Senate-confirmed chief.
The agency has come under scrutiny in recent years for its outdated technology, air traffic controller shortage, a string of close calls and a systemwide outage in January 2023 that briefly halted all flights. The FAA’s previous lack of oversight into Boeing has also come under fire, following the two fatal 737 Max crashes and the Alaska Airlines blowout.
Under Whitaker, the FAA has ramped up its oversight on Boeing, and he has received continued bipartisan support from Congress. [...]
However, Whitaker has drawn the ire of one of Trump’s key allies: Elon Musk, who will co-chair the administration's newly minted Department of Government Efficiency.
In September, Musk railed against Whitaker over FAA regulations halting SpaceX launches. Musk had repeatedly called for Whitaker’s resignation at the time and said the agency should punish Boeing over its botched Starliner launch rather than charge “petty” fines to SpaceX.
The halting of SpaceX was such an agenda,