High Roller Observation Wheel is one of Las Vegas’ attractions many tourists want to visit and photograph. And a California tourist Reuben Burciaga probably took the most expensive picture of it ever. While he was flying his DJI Phantom 3 over the Ferris wheel, he lost control over the drone. The aircraft eventually landed on McCarran International Airport, so Burciaga was slapped with a fine of $20,000.
Photographer got stopped at the airport three times because he had a Pelican case
Pelican cases are a good choice for protecting your pricey gear while flying. But one such case recently caused a series of unpleasant situations for photographer Antonio Kuilan. The airport security stopped him three times at Houston Airport, and all three times he raised suspicion because of the Pelican case in which he carried his gear. We spoke to Antonio about this case to hear more, and we learned that he wasn’t the only one who had this experience.
Heathrow airport shut down due to drone sightings
Only three weeks ago, drone sightings grounded 100,000 passengers on 760 flights on Gatwick airport. And now somebody flew a drone near Heathrow, another major airport in London. Because of this, all departures were temporarily stopped for “precautionary measures.”
Flying with gear? You may soon be able to keep it in the carry-on luggage thanks to new scanners
When you’re flying with photo gear, it’s a pretty slow process to have all your cameras, lenses and other stuff scanned separately. But here is some good news: Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is currently testing new scanners that will allow you to all electronics gear in your carry-on luggage and go through the airport security without so much fuss.
This is the chaos drones cause when flying near airports
On July 2nd around 5 p.m., a drone was spotted flying near Gatwick Airport in the UK. We all know it’s forbidden to fly drones near airports, but maybe we’re not aware how much of a chaos it can cause. A recent visualization from NATS shows exactly how big the disruption was.
The runway was closed for 14 minutes and all the arriving flights were directed away. Although 14 minutes may not seem much, when you look at the visualization, you can realize how much mess a single drone near the airport can cause.
FAA proposes that electronics is banned from checked luggage on all international flights
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has recently proposed that the laptop ban should expand to all international flights. This time, it won’t refer to the laptops, cameras and other devices in the carry-on, but in the checked luggage. Reportedly, the United Nations will consider the proposal in the upcoming weeks. If it gets accepted, you may not be able to put large electronic devices in your checked bags, no matter where from or where to you’re traveling.
Is your camera bigger than a smartphone? TSA will scan it separately
As we recently reported, the U.S. has lifted the electronics ban due to the “enhanced security measures.” As it turns out, these measures involve the separate scan of all the electronics from your carry-on if it’s larger than a smartphone. If you’re a photographer, this means you’ll have to put your camera into a bin for separate x-ray scanning. After extensive testing on 10 airports, Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will expand these measures to all U.S. airports soon.
How and why to register your photo equipment when you leave the US – part 2
A few months back, I wrote a post about how to register photography & video equipment before USA departure. This post attempted to answer most of the questions regarding the forms and the procedures necessary to register your gear prior to an international flight.
On that same post, I wrote what I knew and could gather at that time on the subject, so it could serve other photographers and videographers traveling with their equipment oversees.
I was resolved to do this since, after returning from a photography tour in Argentina with a cornucopia of cameras and lenses, I was prompted to present equipment’s registration to a customs officer at MIA International.
Needless to say, I was totally clueless on the topic but determined to find some definite answers.
DJI offers $145,000 for finding drone pilots who disrupted flights in China
Between April 14 and 21, drone pilots were flying near Chengdu Shuangliu Airport in China. Their recklessness caused more than 100 flights to make unscheduled landings or returns, and these changes affected over 10,000 passengers.
DJI, the world’s leading drone manufacturer, puts a bounty on the drone pilots. They offer up to 1 million yuan ($145,000) reward for any clues that could lead to the perpetrators.
How and why to register your video & photo equipment prior to US departure
Once I was expecting my bags, upon my return from a recent trip to Argentina, and I was ready to leave the terminal area at the Miami International Airport (MIA) I was requested, by a customs officer, to a manual and thorough search of all my belongings. I didn’t think twice and followed the agent into a small office next to the baggage claim area. Sure, I produced all my baggage claim tickets which were neatly arranged on my passport back jacket, but the officer’s attention was centered on just my luggage.
Granted, I had one piece of regular luggage, several hard cases and a monopod with me [Most customs abroad misidentify that as some hunting accessory! :P).
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