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There was a report on TV where they showed how all kinds of civilian and surveillance drones are in the air, the number is rising sharply. So I was wondering, is it legal to simply shoot them down when they fly above one's premise and are deemed a potential threat? Up to which height is the air above my home my airspace so to speak?
I doubt its legal to shoot drones out of the sky particularly if you are living in a residential neighborhood.
A lot of kids will probably get drones for Christmas i cant believe your default action will be to shoot them out of the sky if one accidentally comes near your house. If you feel these devices are a threat to your safety then calling the police would be a more prudent course of action.Proving one of these things posed a personal threat to you might be a tough thing to prove if the owner of a shot down drone takes the shooter to court.
Best idea is to call your local city hall or police department to see what your rights are concerning shooting drones.
Send up a "counter drone" to knock it out of the sky. Just attach a large net to a drone and drop it on the intruder.
You could also install one of these products on your property. I like the one that installs maleware on the offending drown and crashes it. 5 Anti-Drone Solutions That Could Change the Game - DRONELIFE
A present controversy that is likely to worsen. Commercial air traffic is now having a problem with them and are launching studies of how a jet engine will react to "ingesting" a drone (have already performed tests with ingesting various forms of avian wildlife).
Air space a tricky question, how high up do private property owners rights go? Planes are flying over private property all the time at high altitudes, but a drone at anywhere from 25 to 100 feet or so above, mounted with camera, someone skinny dipping in their hot tub, ability to instantly upload videos to social media, what a fine mess this is.
Problems exist mainly in densely populated areas, and people are not going to want to pay money for installing countermeasure devices or services, nor should they have to.
Governments usually have rarely enforced laws that they "dust off" and take out of the box every once in awhile when needed. Laws like not being able to discharge a firearm, bow and arrow, or even a slingshot in populated areas so to appease both parties they may make taking down a drone legal in certain instances, but give the party with the violated privacy or airspace no viable way to take one down.
Last edited by ShouldIMoveOrStayPut...?; 12-21-2015 at 06:31 AM..
Reason: Forgot to add a word.
Early case law indicates the shooter would be liable for the damage - however, if the property is posted "no trespassing," the counter-claim can be made that there was intentional trespass, nullifying most claims of property damage. In Vermont, evidence gathered by drone use over a posted property was thrown out of court as a violation of privacy.
Location: God's Gift to Mankind for flying anything
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With the *new* requirement of having to register your drone (when above a certain weight), there maybe a rule or law also as to what altitude you *can* fly above a dense population.
I, as a pilot and depending on what I fly, can be as low as 500 feet.
Any lower, and I am flying at an unlawful altitude ...
I can tell you one thing and that is when I fly my ultra light (which is legally registered as an aircraft and thus has an *N* number) and I see a drone near me, I will shoot the bugger out of the sky ! Keep in mind that in certain places, I can be flying two feet off the ground !
The *problem* starts (I think) when those drones are flown *out of sight* (which with the present video feedback, could be done).
When flown within sight, the *pilot* of that drone can see what is within the vicinity of the drone, and thus can keep a *safe* distance.
Yes, I have heard of such tests where they simulate birds flying into engines, but I suppose a drone is more of a problem as it almost certainly contains metal parts such as electric motors.
Hijacking drones via the signal sounds interesting, but it might also be a bit dangerous when a drone gets out of control. But maybe there are ways to really hijack drones and land them safely.
When I shoot down a drone, its owner has to prove it was me Might not be that easy, especially in countries where lots of people have hunting rifles and what not.
Do all drones have cams on-board or are there drones which are flown based solely on GPS information?
We could teach birds to take them down
I don't even understand why a company like Amazon wants to use drones to deliver stuff. A drone can carry just a few pounds of small stuff at a time, so it has to go back and forth a whole lot. Doesn't sound very efficient.
I think drones should only be used for dangerous tasks such as observing wildfires, entering burning buildings to check for people, etc.
It is a good idea to make people register their drones. I mean, the airspace is not the Wild West where people can do whatever they please and get away with it because drones are not marked.
Sometimes I even wonder why bikes don't have to be registered, with license plate and everything
I have seen drones at 400-500 feet and figured they were police equipment, I watched with a scope for a while till it left for the airport /police station vicinity.
If however it is a private drone that is over head ,shooting it with a fire arm, is out of the question, however if I feel it is intruding on my property, I might take it down with a sling shot and paint ball, and then deliver it to the sheriffs office .
If they want it back they can go claim it.
I have hot air balloons flying over head all the time, and it gets irritating being invaded, but there's nothing much you can do about it.
I've been flying R/C helicopters for years without any problems. Now, I have to put up with bystander comments like "That thing flies near my house I'll shoot it down" or "I hope you got that thing registered with the government." WTF?!?! people, it's a R/C helicopter. It doesn't have a camera, I'm registered with the AMA, I have insurance. Besides, according to the new law, operators register themselves as sUAS operators - the aircraft aren't registered.
Suddenly, I have to listen to a bunch of misinformed people rambling on about what they think they know.
Last edited by Dirt Grinder; 12-21-2015 at 01:06 PM..
You don't "own" the airspace above your property. If you try to shoot one down, I hope you go to jail... that's idiotic
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Might not be that easy, especially in countries where lots of people have hunting rifles and what not.
WTF?!?! people, it's a R/C helicopter. It doesn't have a camera, I'm registered with the AMA, I have insurance. Besides, according to the new law, operators register themselves as sUAS operators - the aircraft aren't registered.
