[Peetwo]

TICK..TOCK 6G - 1 month & counting??

Via the ABC online :

Drone users breaking laws as burden of proof makes prosecution difficult
ABC Illawarra
Updated Mon at 3:16pm
PHOTO: Drones provide spectacular vantage points but sometimes the temptation to fly illegally is enticing. (ABC Illawarra: Justin Huntsdale)
RELATED STORY: Like a security guard in the sky, these drones spot fights before they happen
RELATED STORY: Drone instructor welcomes CASA social media trawling to catch illegal flyers
RELATED STORY: ABC develops training course to use drones for newsgathering

Drone users are breaking laws by flying in restricted areas and over people, but authorities say it can be difficult gathering the evidence to fine them.

A brief scan across Instagram reveals numerous drone photos which appear to be shot illegally in Australia.

Rules for flying drones in Australia

• No flying more than 120 metres above the ground
  
• No flying over or near an area affecting public safety or where emergency operations are underway
  
• No flying within 30m of people
  
• If your drone weighs more than 100 grams you must keep your drone at least 5.5km away from controlled aerodromes
  
• No flying at night
  
• Your drone must stay within visual line-of sight
  
• No flying over or above people e.g. at festivals, sporting ovals, populated beaches, parks, busy roads and footpaths
  
• Flying must not create a hazard to another aircraft, person, or property
  
• No flying in prohibited or restricted areas
  
• Local council and/or national park laws prohibit drone flights in certain areas
  

[size=undefined]
Source: CASA[/size]

People have published images from no-fly zones, overpopulated beaches, and from altitudes greater than 120 metres.

As drone sales increase, so do the number of people breaking the law, but fining them can be difficult.

"Getting that evidence can be difficult because we won't have seen the activity and we rely on witness statements, video, and photo evidence," Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) spokesperson Peter Gibson said.

"Someone can see a drone breaking the law, but not identify the person flying it and we can't prove who was flying it."

Mr Gibson said CASA issued 30 fines last year for illegal drone use and has already issued 40 this year.

While fine numbers could be increasing, so is drone ownership, with estimates of between 100,000 and 150,000 drones in the country.

Crashing drone into Melbourne's Eureka Tower

Wollongong drone user Jake Lapham had only owned his drone a few weeks when he launched it in Melbourne to film some spectacular sunrise footage at the Eureka Tower.

The aircraft went behind the tower, lost contact with its controller, and tried to return to its launch point as the crow flies.


PHOTO: Wollongong drone user Jake Lapham was fined for crashing his drone into Melbourne's Eureka Tower. (ABC Illawarra: Justin Huntsdale)

It crashed into the tower and a few weeks after leaving his details with the building managers, while trying to find his new drone, Mr Lapham received a call.

"I'd done more studying on no-fly zones by this point and realised I was in trouble," he said.

"Three weeks later I got a $1,000 fine in the mail."

Since then, Mr Lapham has been using CASA's Can I Fly There app which uses live GPS to show where a drone can and cannot be flown.

"At the time [of the crash], the CASA app wasn't out and it is invaluable to help drone owners fly safely," he said.

"I am a lot more careful flying within Australia now I know CASA is watching.

"I have a friend who's been fined from social media evidence and people reporting him, so now I fly within the rules and am sensible because it's only a matter of time until someone flies in a reckless manner and something bad happens with an aircraft."

Social media evidence not enough to prosecute

CASA has openly warned drone users they will use social media to help prosecute illegal activity.

"The challenge is proving who was flying it at the time and we have used social media for that, but it can be difficult," Mr Gibson said.

"It's not easy to get enough evidence to issue fines but we're working on that all the time and we encourage people to send reports to us.

"Even if they can't provide the information needed, it gives us a picture of drone non-compliance."

Mr Gibson said while the number of fines was not especially large, most were more than $1,000.

CASA has defended its evidence standards despite people flagrantly breaking the law.

"It's not frustrating because as a responsible aviation safety regulator, when we're going to take action, it has to pass the proof of evidence test," Mr Gibson said.

"We need to prove the breach was there with evidence, otherwise that wouldn't be fair to the drone-flying public if we did anything less than that — it's a good process."

---

&..



Drone laws Australia: New fines and registration system under consideration

THOUSANDS of Australians would have to register their drones like they register their cars, and face on-the-spot fines for breaking flight rules under strict new ...
Courier Mail

---

Finally in the Oz today:

Piloting with drones
ROBYN IRONSIDE
Pilot and drone business operator Mitch Bannink is blown away by the speed of the fledgling industry’s advancement.

---

Mitch Bannink piloting the airwaves with drones

Combining a career as a commercial aviation pilot with a drone business would appear to be fraught with problems, given the tensions between airlines and drone users.

But pilot and drone-operating business owner Mitch Bannink wears both hats with apparent ease as he strives to educate others about the responsible use of unmanned aerial vehicles.

His interest in drones grew out of a childhood fascination with remote-controlled aircraft that became more sophisticated as he grew older.

“My first remote-controlled aircraft with a camera on it was a little $200 helicopter with a camera stuck to the bottom,” Mr Bannink said. “It just seemed like a very good idea to have a camera that we could use to take photos of buildings and things like that but the quality was terrible.”

Despite his own pioneering ­efforts, Mr Bannink is still in awe of how rapidly drone technology has developed in recent years.

He said the range and quality of drones, not to mention the shrinking size, was unbelievable.

“Nowadays, (drone manufacturer) DJI are making products that have infra-red cameras on drones, there are sensors on drones which avoid obstacles so the drone actually has a thought process,” Mr Bannink said.

“With just simple DJI products we can go out into remote areas and generate a 3D map similar to Google Earth in a matter of hours.

“The same drone can turn around half an hour later and be used in a search and rescue operation and five minutes later you can go and use the same piece of equipment to go shark spotting.”

Applications for drones were growing daily, with the Queensland government recently announcing that the technology would be used to precisely apply herbicides to weeds in sugar cane fields.

The technique has the added benefit of reducing herbicide run-off into local waterways.

“One of the most interesting ones I’ve heard of is the use of drones to fly in the blowhole spray out of whales,” Mr Bannink said.

“Instead of chasing around a whale with a stick to try to get a sample, they just fly a drone through the spray and then get it back and take the DNA off the drone.

“Who would’ve thought that was something you could do with a drone?”

DJI head of Asia-Pacific public policy Adam Welsh said the company had invested heavily in safety functions such as return to home and obstacle avoidance, and he hoped further regulation of the industry in Australia would not restrict innovation.

A recent Senate committee report on unmanned aerial vehicles made a range of recommendations, including a requirement to register drones weighing more than 200g, and for their operators to undergo written and practical tests.

Mr Welsh said any high costs for registration or an unreasonable level of training would slow the growth and adoption of the technology.

“That would mean Australia might lose its place as one of the key innovators in the sector, which would be a shame as there is so much excitement in the market, and so much more value this powerful technology can bring to businesses and society,” Mr Welsh said.

“It should be a source of pride for Australians at how fast this country has adopted and built businesses around such a new technology.”

He said drones were “saving lives” at least once a week.

“A third of those lives saved are from recreational users who see someone in duress and report it,” Mr Welsh said.

“Access to this technology is important. It creates jobs, it saves lives and it has fostered a really health technology ecosystem in Australia that everyone should want to see it thrive.”

MTF...P2