Hi all, I’m fairly new to drones. I have completed the flyer questionnaire and have flyer I’d. I was watching one of those auditors and was surprised at the police officers claim. The drone was clearly above the operators head around about 12’ ft. The officer said that he saw him look at his controller and that this meant he was not maintaining VLOS. So does this mean you cannot look at your controller while flying? Seems wrong to me, The information on the display height, distance and wind warnings. Sorry if this stupid
The ANO says you must:
maintain direct, unaided visual contact with their aircraft sufficient to monitor its flight path in relation to other aircraft, persons, vehicles, vessels and structures for the purpose of avoiding collisions
Sufficient is the key word.
Thanks Simon, I thought the officer was being a bit harsh as it was directly above him. Plus the information on the controller, height/ distance and wind warnings are there to aid us. As you say though sufficient is the key word. Thanks for the reply much appreciated.
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I suppose it is a little like ‘driving with due care and attention’.
That doesn’t mean you can’t look at your speedo, and your radio, and your sat nav. But it does mean you must have your eyes on the road so that you give looking where you’re going, sufficient / due care and attention.
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Well put Simon, I think that’s a good way of putting it. Should I ever be in the same situation that’s how I will answer. I want make sure I’m on the right side of the law and operating safely. I wouldn’t be auditor so not expecting any problems. Thanks again for your help.
OK, could you please help me understand how is it possible to maintain unaided visual contact with a Mini 4 Pro / Avata / Neo which flies 400-500 meters away and 120 meters high?
Thanks!
The law requires that you maintain direct unaided visual contact with the drone at all times. I.e. you must not fly drone beyond your visual line of sight.
Your question is a little like saying “But how can I obey the 30 mph speed limit, when my car has a top speed of 140 mph?”
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This is my point with the xreal glasses, in the glasses the camera image as is in the goggles appears transparent against the sky so you can not only maintain direct line of site but also, at the same time without looking away from the drone, see all telemetry from the craft, it is exactly what typhoon pilots do every day with those fancy bone domes they wear so I call that president 
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Hi Ya John / Simon , Well the Police Officers we’re Blatantly being Heavy Handed and Petty ,
a friend of mine you know Simon Gus of GRENADE FPV ,Has Just Done a Video Tutorial on the Subject of in Relation VLOS and CAA as you know Technically you have to Have a Spotter to Hand as your Wearing your Googles , As a Experiment He Pulled which appeared to Look Like Pair of Sunglasses ,But know These Glasses are Called Xreal Air 2 Pro ,Plug in to USB on your RC Controller and Instantly They Mirror Image of Your Controller I.e. your Telemetry ,etc. etc. with 3 Level Dimmer also Still View Everything Around you Like People etc. Had to Purchase them the are Fantastic , As Gus said be Interesting what the feed back from the CAA , ? Have a Look at His Video , Regards Alex North London UK DragonFly
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