Not pulling the trigger, just lookin’

Recent posting about Drones and what not, and my prior interests/endeavors,,,

I jumped back in to them, at least researching how far things have come.   O!M!G!,,,,

Just like the computer industry, things have JUMPED FORWARD,,,  no creepin’ along here, things are really REALLY much more complex than they were just four years ago.   Better Long range systems (30 klicks!!! is pretty standard now)   One vid I watched showed the guy ‘toeing the line’ at thirty klicks and it wasn’t the transciever for control that was failing, it wa his video transmitter reaching limit.  (can’t see, can’t fly, unlike with actual flying where you have all the gauges and indicators to guide you along.)    Think about that,,, 25 miles away and he was just hitting his visual limits,,,   Up the power on the Vid and he could have gone further (I believe they don’t want to do that because of interference onboard, AND, they start dipping toes into FCC regs.   FAA has really started some shit with regs recently,,, another ‘government overreach’ from all the F!you’s flying around in comments.)  

and that gets me into where I stopped today.  RID: Remote Identity.  Thats what went into effect Sept 16′ 2024 in FAA regs.   The drone pilots have to install a chip that broadcasts a ‘license plate’ and the have to register with the FAA (which also means they need to be certified by such,  lots of hoops to jump through.) and currently, there is ZERO WAY TO ENFORCE IT.    The idea looks good on paper, but when the rubber meets the road, No traction.    How many cops are going to start tracking down some guy because his RID was ‘caught’ over a ball feild his kid was playing at?    How many departments even have the equipment to pick up that info, let alone the resources to chase down every incident?    The FAA just farted and showed just how inept the department has become over the last 100 years.  The biggest complaint I have read is “You don’t interupt your pilot when he is trying to fly or land the plane, why would your assume that a guy piloting a drone would be more accessible?”   These things are not “Toys” and most of the people flying them are very aware of what sort of damage they can do if things go wrong.  Hell, the things are flying lawnmowers, and even though those blades look weak and fragile, they WILL cut a person to the bone many many times before they succumb to the laws of physics.

I’m starting to think that the recent ‘drone debacle’ was a staged event to drive public sentiment for further regulation of these ‘toys’.   It may have been an actual DOTMil exercise, but the media hype was pure propaganda for other means and ends.  

Now, I have a confession to make.  I am torn in two directions over the use of drones.   One is of the “PRIVACY” factor.  I get a little perturbed when people are looking over my shoulder, and when I find out that a drone was hovering nearby, I get even more perturbed.   Not that I am doing anything wrong or wayward, but that “Someone is being a snoop” feeling gets my ire up.    I dislike being ‘supervised’, and the small footprint and silence of a drone really puts ‘stealth’ and ‘sneaking’ into new lights.   (((we had a drone peeking at us while we were working at one of the schools, recently.   Don’t know who was controlling it, (and I think that is part of my dislike of it, the obsurity it allows) nor why they decided we needed ‘watched’.   Nothing ever came of it, but it left a very bad impression on me, and a little anger.   I can understand why some people get violent with some drone operators,,,    There needs to be SOME discretion on the operators side, respecting others right to privacy: even it that person is out in public or on a lake fishing or whatever.   )))

The other side of that coin in my world.  Its a tool, one that can add levels of safety to a hobby.   I can tell you, from personal experiance, that landing a Model Airplane is MUCH easier when you have the Pilots point of view, not trying to coordinate from a distance out side of the ‘cockpit’.   Much smoother, better able to determine ground speed and attitude of the ship, and you can “see” any obstacles on the runway that need avoided, or if you need to abort a landing and try again.     Same goes for the takeoffs and actual flight: You have a better perspective of what the model is up to, unlike from 100’s of yards away.   

Like any tool, it can be re-purposed for other things, to include “alterior motives”.    Just look at what they are doing in the hotspots of the Ukraine, and other places where things are not friendly to life.   That doesn’t mean you can regulate ethics or morals into people just because you don’t like their ideas. (and I feel that is what the agencies are trying to do: more for ‘control’ aspects than safety.

Not gonna pull the trigger on any equipment to fly FPV right now.   I know the learning curve has steepened since four years ago.   And I have other matters that need more financial attention that some toys.    (and I have two planes that are in need of  a serious dusting and going over  before I would dump more money into the hobby. (would need a new radio,, mine is out of date and unsupported now.)  But I can tell you, the itch was been re-awakened.    and I am feeling like Rip vanWinkle looking around.

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