So. Since I bought my Mini 3 a few months back i’ve…
*Registered with the UK CAA for a Flyer/User ID. (£15)
*Registered on the Alpha Tango Website to fly in the EU.
*Registered with the Cypriot Aviation Authority to fly in Cyprus (€15)
*Registered with AESA to fly in Spain.
*Sat a fairly basic test to show competency
*Watched numerous YT videos and read numerous articles about the subject.
*Downloaded and adhered to TheDroneMap boundries.
*Downloaded and checked the Windfinder app to check conditions.
Arranged Insurance through FPVUK.
All to fly a souped up toy that weighs less than a bag of sugar and contains more technology and safety features than the Apollo 13 mission to the moon!
Meanwhile, we all live in constant fear of backlash regarding incurring fines, dealing with the authorities, councils, the Police and the general public.
Then, I saw a teen belting it down a road at about 30mph+, on an 50KG+ E-Bike wearing nothing more than a black face mask… No licence, registration, Insurance…
Nothing! Nothing at all! Because nobody in “Power” cares! If they did, they would ban the import and sale and make it a criminal offence to use them anywhere in/on public, roads, parks, footpath, cycleways etc
Another solution is anyone against Drones as a Hobby…Remove them from our Fantastic Country and Good Riddance. Otherwise just ignore these Kill Joys and just stick to the rules.
So true what your saying including all the people flying drons with no insurance, no CAA registration or anything and then giving us all the bad reputation.
Its only recently shop on TV who sells loads of drones have started mentioning about the the rules, but they brush over it very quickly totally wrong.
Disgraceful. We are victimized because any member of the public can just common have a moan at us because we’re standing still! Police to frightened to approach immigrants on ebikes doing food deliveries, so we are an easy target.
Oh, you only have to register and pay once for your EU license, in the country where your first going to fly. That licence carries you then for all the EU. Just be careful of the local laws obviously airports army but in the EU also ancient sites (think Greece and Italy etc)
Hope that helps safe flying, and if you do things by the book you’ll not have a problem anywhere
I’m currently trying to register to fly my drone in Sri Lanka. Regulations here make it practically impossible but hey, ho. Good luck with the e-scooters, maybe video one, track it and share the video with the police?
I am not sure I see the correlation between drones and e-bikes. Obviously both things are relatively new in terms of availability and proliferation but they are quite different in terms of risk and potential harm.
In my area we are plagued with the balaclava-wearing young morons who speed around on e-bikes, and I would love nothing more than for the government to force them to take tests, wear helmets and have number plates, a bit like the raft of certificates and bureaucratic hoops drone pilots have to go through. But if there were checks and balances in place for these people, they wouldn’t abide by them, they would still terrorise communities and stick a couple of fingers up at the coppers who can’t chase them or follow them to make an arrest. Laws and rules wouldn’t matter, they just don’t care.
Most drone pilots are well-meaning, law-abiding and just wanting to enjoy a hobby. It’s a hobby with inherent issues such as safety, privacy and access.
Just because there are others that are worse and more of a menace shouldn’t mean we don’t do what’s right, what’s expected and what’s lawful. Two wrongs don’t make a right.
I understand how you feel. and you are right. There is a distinction, though.
an e-bike, technically an electrically assisted pedal cycle’ (EAPC) must have pedals that can be used to propel it. It can be propelled up to 15.5mph without pedalling but only if it’s been approved. Its electric motor:
must have a ‘continuous rated power’ output of no more than 250 watts
must not be able to propel the bike when it’s travelling at more than 15.5 miles per hour (mph)
The ones you see zooming in and out of traffic, riders wearing balaclavas delivering drugs etc are generally electic motorbikes like the SurRon and must be registered, taxed, insured and ridden only by licenced riders wearing crash helmets. Of course, no one can identify them and the police are rarely able to catch them. and sometimes they don’t know the difference West Midlands Police to change testing after destroying legal e-bike - BBC News
@freedoddy You’ve pretty much summed it up! The irony is that most drone pilots go out of their way to learn the rules, register, get insured, check airspace and weather, and fly responsibly. Yet you see people on illegal e-bikes or scooters with no registration, insurance or protective gear, riding through traffic without a second thought.
Unfortunately, the responsible ones are often the ones worrying the most. The best thing we can do is keep flying legally, educate others where we can, and help show the public that the vast majority of drone pilots take safety seriously. Hopefully, over time, that positive image outweighs the actions of the few who don’t.
The correlation is simply that regulations have been put in place for Drones (where I presume somebody knows a lot of us are sensible people and will pay our way and do the right thing), whereas nobody has ever even attempted to regulate or legislate for the e-bikes/scooter mob. It’s just a free for all.
The irony is that most drone pilots go out of their way to learn the rules, register, get insured, check airspace and weather, and fly responsibly. Yet you see people on illegal e-bikes or scooters with no registration, insurance or protective gear, riding through traffic without a second thought.
