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DJI’s new AeroScope system can now track and identify your drone while flying

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Tracking drones is a bit of a hot topic. With all of the legislation constantly changing and evolving around the world, authorities want to know who’s flying offending drones. Put simply, there’s really no accountability. Unless they can find the person holding the transmitter, or law-breaking footage is posted to YouTube or Facebook and reported, there’s no way to find out who’s breaking the rules.

Now, though, that’s about to change. The concept of tracking drones has been a difficult challenge to overcome. But DJI have come up with a solution. AeroScope. They figured, “Hey, we’re pumping out all this drone data to the operator, why not take advantage of the existing system?”. Which is exactly what AeroScope does, to provide information on nearby drones.

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Town tries to limit drone pilots. Pilot draws FAA regulations card and wins a lawsuit – could have US-wide implications

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The FAA has relaxed his drone regulations a little in the USA. People no longer have to register them, and guidelines for hobbyists and professionals are quite clear. When Newton Massachusetts attempted take things further with local regulation, though, one resident fought back. Dr Michael Singer, a professor at Harvard, claimed the proposed ordinance was preempted by federal law and violated his rights.

His case won. The court ruled that it was indeed in violation of his rights. sUAS News went live on Google hangouts today with Dr Singer, along with Loretta Alkalay and attorney Jonathan Rupprecht. It’s a very interesting discussion going over what happened and the potential implications for the rest of the USA.

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Flying a drone in Sweden? Remove your camera first or you’re breaking the law

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First reported by Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet, the country’s highest court ruled on Friday that it is now illegal to fly drones with attached cameras in public places as they qualify as surveillance cameras. It’s a huge blow to Sweden’s hobbyist drone community.

Hobbyists in Sweden are understandably upset, and the initial reactions are about as would be expected. Now, to fly a drone on public land would require a CCTV permit as if you were monitoring a camera mounted on a pole in a city centre. You’ll need one of these permits each time you wanted to go out. Each permit comes with a cost and no guarantee of it being granted.

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EASA can’t distinguish between “model aircraft” and drones – Wants to make all current systems illegal to fly

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This might sound like a click-baity title, but this is essentially what will happen if the current “Prototype regulations” go through. It’s difficult to know just where to begin when trying to describe how ludicrous some of these regulations are. They would essentially outlaw almost every drone currently on the market. The European Aviation Safety Authority also can’t seem to figure out the difference between drones and “model aircraft”, so they’re being pulled in as well.

In the UK and throughout Europe, right now, we have some fairly healthy drone rules which allow hobbyists a lot of freedom to pursue their hobby. The new regulations would place very impractical if not virtually impossible limitations on what and how you can fly. This video from First Person View goes through the basics of these regulations, and what they mean.

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FAA releases commercial drone rules, they’re totally OK with your drone photography business

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After long drawn out speculation and worry, the FAA have finally confirmed and released the regulations regarding commercial drone use. The short version is that they’re fine with it and being able to do it is relatively easy, as long as you’re over 16 years old.

Posted to the FAA website, the new “107 to Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations” sets the terms for civilian operation of small UAS (Unmanned Aircraft System) devices.

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Small Drone Owners May Not Have To Register With The FAA After All

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It was only two months ago that the FAA mandated that all drone owners will have to register with the FAA.  But now a “Micro Drone” amendment is suggested to be added to the FAA’s funding bill that will exempt small drone owners from registering. (The bill goes by the boring name of Aviation Innovation, Reform, and Authorization (AIRR) Act). The bill must be approved by the congress by March 31st which is just around the corner in legislation terms.

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Japan Introduces A Drone Hunting Drone – Nets Rogue Drones In Mid Air

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December is just not a month to be a drone owner. After the US decision to register all drones above half a pound, and now Tokyo Police are initiating a task force that will be able to net drones mid-air. How? Using a bigger drone, of course.

The task force was initiated after a drone carrying bottled radioactive substance landed on the roof of the Japanese prime minister’s office.

The hunter drone (for a lack of a better name) can deploy a 3×2 meters net that entangles the rough drone’s rotors and rendering it inoperable.

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“Entering the national air space is a very serious matter” – All Drone Owners Will Need To Register

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Here it comes… US just created a task force to create a Drone Registry by November 20. Frankly, we are not surprised.

The Obama administration would want all US drones to be registered. They said that this is a part of a bigger effort to “to curtail rogue drone flights that pose a danger to commercial aircraft and crowded public venues“.

What this exactly means, we are still unsure. The task force will have to recommend on what constitutes a Drone (I guess a DJI Inspire 1 is not the same as those little baby quadcopters); how the registration process will be handled; and the timeframe for execution.

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We Knew It Was Coming: Drone Has A Near Miss With An Airbus A320 Airplane

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Looking at the events from last year or so, it was just a matter of time until something like this happen. A drone had a near miss with an Airbus A320 airplane in Ben Gurion Airport in Israel.

The Airbus A320 was operated by Brussels Airlines and carries 160 staff and passengers. On Monday afternoon flight BEL3289 was approaching landing and at about 4,000 feet (about 1.2km) the pilot reported that a drone was crossing its path approximately 75-100 meter away. The pilot also reported that the drone was black and blue and had 4 small motors.

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Drones Under Fire: Officials Offer $75,000 Reward Leading To Pilots Who Flew Over Wildfire

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If your motto is, “Have drone, will fly over wildfires,” you could find yourself in some hot water.  Earlier this month, we reported how private drones were delaying firefighting efforts in California’s San Bernardino County.  Now, the heads of those drone pilots could be on the proverbial chopping block.

Obviously, people weren’t happy.  Officials, who credit the drones with grounding firefighting aircraft and allowing the fires to spread, are offering a $75,000 reward for information leading to the pilots of the drones.  But, it doesn’t stop there.

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