Using the D word... gonna make lawmakers nervous.
Don't steal, the government hates competition.
Yeah, saying "drone" seems to dumb it down a bit. According to the FAA.. Anything that flies without a pilot on board is a "UA".. It doesent matter to them if its a model airplane of 4 lbs and valued at a few hundred bucks or a 500 lb craft billed out at 300K... Its still a sUA or "small Un-manned Aircraft. "Drone" is basically nothing more than street slang that the average Joe understands.. I hate reading the news "Drone attack kills 6 in Pakistan".. UGH!.. I think to ease the publics perception we need to stick with "model airplane" with some really cool electronics on board.
Myron
Great stuff Lucidity! Thanks for the video... very helpful as well.
Point taken with regards to the word "drone"... It's a byproduct of my work in public safety, I suppose. Cops and firefighters are, for the most part, Myron's "average Joes" when it comes to their level of understanding of this technology. If I say "drone," everybody pretty much gets it. Being an actual English major, I'd prefer to employ the most precise vocabulary available -- which would lead me to call our creations Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS), but then EVERYBODY would look at me cross-eyed.
I'll try to dial back my use of the D-word on this forum, however, so that people don't imagine my two-pound bird unleashing fiery death from above...
@ Lucidity.. Good Idea!!.. Are you a dog handeler?.. If so, Sorry if I stepped on your toes!.. All the ones we have worked with were a bit different!
Keep up the good work and awesome video editing..
Myron
@ Myron... Oh, no -- the work that I do is not nearly so honorable. I'm a wordsmith, graphic designer, photographer and (of course) occasional sUAS pilot. I work pretty closely with the front-line guys, however, so I feel at least somewhat connected to them and the work that they do. My only point was that I'd run across some dog handlers who were downright enthusiastic about the technology. But, you find all kinds of people in SAR, for sure...
Granted some definitions of drone do describe an unmanned remote control vehicle, but in a way FPV puts you in the cockpit, so it's virtually manned. I'm mostly concerned about the public image of our hobby, just like most people here. Not just being picky about semantics.
Don't steal, the government hates competition.
Unfortunatley, the public already has a skued perception of what a "drone" is. Hopefully with this and forums like it, we can sway the publics image of what these are good for.. The guy that was going to attack the pentagon with his C4 laden model airplanes, and the ever popular headline "Drone attack kills....". I was speaking with Sentry the other day about this and its pretty laughable if you know all the details.. the guy didnt have ANY R/C experience and his phsyics major, obviously didnt teach him about lift, drag, or velocity and so on. Many believe he was just thrown under the bus by his CIA handllers. The public should be way more concerned at his attempts to get C4 and AK47's and why do we allow so many people to come here for a great education that hate everything about the American Way.
Myron
First, volunteer! Become a member.
Go get yourself NIMS certified. At least thru 100 and 700
Go to any training events put on by your local SAR team
Sign up for any continuing education seminars they will be attending for SAR practice and theory
As an aerial specialist, you will be participating in lots of other things other than SAR, get familiar with every possible event your SAR team would respond to, including fund raisers!
Make sure your equipment WORKS! Nothing worse than showing up and going "Oh DUHHH! My battery is dead!" In the field the old saying goes "Two is one, and one is none" and believe me its true.
Know YOUR limitations. If you know your wind limit is 25mph, don't try to fly in a 35mph wind because they asked you to.
This is just a short list......
Gene
A few questions pop up in my mind:
Do people want to get FPV legalized for SAR only, or is it (also) about starting a professional business and make money from it? (i'm not saying it is a bad thing) Or asked in a different way: Are there any other benefits besides doing a good deed?
I can imagine that governments do not want the hassle of certification, inspection and what not of all homebuilt aircraft. Maybe start from the other side and have everything ready? Like an insurrancecompany who covers all liability, have minium requirements of the aircraft (wingspan, backup system, homing beacon, foam only etc)
Sorry if this has been discussed before.
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