I have to ask this…the regs state you should keep the drone within sight at all times…but if its 50m up in the air - I’ll be honest, I can’t see it - my mini 3 is the size of a paperback book!
I’m interested to hear people’s interpretations of this?
I have to ask this…the regs state you should keep the drone within sight at all times…but if its 50m up in the air - I’ll be honest, I can’t see it - my mini 3 is the size of a paperback book!
I’m interested to hear people’s interpretations of this?
I don’t think there’s much to interpret - the rules are explicit: you must have clear line of sight to the drone (and, by extension, the airspace around it) at all times. The letter of the law is that, if it’s 50m up and you can’t see it (unaided) in the current conditions, then you are beyond VLOS and must bring it down / closer in order to be compliant.
Do we all abide by this, all the time? Have any of us ever lost VLOS for a moment and had to find the drone in the sky again? That’s a different question… ![]()
I’m sure we all try to abide by this but I’d be a liar if I said I’d never temporarily lost sight of my drone and had to search for it. Of course, some drones are more visible than others. My DJI Flip can be very difficult to see and I find 100 feet more than high enough; lower if some distance away or visibility is poor. My Mavic 3 Pro is far more visible and I can maintain VLOS further than the little Flip. Even so, I still find anything much more than 250 feet makes VLOS problematic. 400 feet is a no-no and, anyway, it’s a maximum height, not a target. If you can’t see your drone then don’t go there.
I think seeing your drone in the sky improves with experience. A grey drone against a grey sky is always going to be problematic. I use a strobe light in these circumstances which helps but VLOS still happens. If I can’t find it in the sky I press return to home which generally helps, there’s no need to land it, just locate it. It happens to everyone at some time or another. I try to fly within the law at all times but it’s easy to lose sight of the drone momentarily, especially when looking at the controller. A spotter is the best way to avoid it, as we do when flying FPV.
I own a Mini 3 and I can still see it at 120m on a bright overcast day with white clouds behind it. Mind you it was directly above me at the time.
It’s a lot harder to see on a clear blue sky day though.
Same as speeding. Everyone does it, but it doesn’t make it legal or right. Just that everyone does it.
I stick to the rules, but I’ve taken a look at my controller momentarily to frame a shot then looked up to lose where it was in the sky.
I find the RTH “beepbeep” kind of useful in those cases and wish there was a function on the remote to do that without having to engage full RTH and canceling it.
One thing I will say is that I’ve seen the pilots the rule is meant to catch, which are those folk who take off and are immediately head down on the controller for the entire flight until they fly back to land. It’s really obvious from afar when you see it.
You are right, drones are difficult to see in the skys. My solution was I did the relevant course and bought a bigger drone.
While i am flying my drone and lose sight of it, i just return to home until i can see/ or hear it again then carry on flying. I think it is near impossible to keep VLOS at all times, just have to be awear of whats around you and if you can (like me) have someone spotting for you.
Wouldn’t the sensible thing to is attach a strobe or select hover until you can obtain VLOS again?
I’m new to this which is one reason a I got a bright sticker pack to apply to my drone for easier visuals