Can I TOAL from my back garden and fly within VLOS providing I fly high enough to avoid GDPR issues?

So. I have my CAA Cert for A2 and A3, plus I’ve done UAV test and passed for A2. Have my Operator ID and my Flyer ID. Got Liability Insurance. My Drone is the 249gm DJI Mini 2. My question is:

If I live in a residential area within a terraced street and have a decent sized back garden surrounded by neighbours, can I TOAL from my back garden and fly within VLOS providing I fly high enough to avoid GDPR issues?

As far as I’m aware I can fly within residential, commercial, industrial and recreational areas as long as:

never fly higher than 120m / 400ft
always keep the drone in sight
Keep clear of airspace restrictions, including around aerodromes, unless you have permission to fly within them
keep 50m away from uninvolved people, to avoid endangering them
In most cases, unless flying a drone that is less than 250g, you must keep at least 150 metres horizontally away from parks, industrial, residential and built-up areas

At the moment I’m sticking to an open field with my local flying club. But would love to get aerial photography elsewhere. So your professional advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

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GADC own resource is your friend here …

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Short answer - yes, you can.

BUT You can also leave your radio on 24/7, park your car making it difficult for the neighbours to access their driveways, leave full rubbish bins out a couple of days before collection. Your neighbours will probably complain.

So take time to let the ones nearest to you know what you are doing and when you are likely to do it. Show them some of the pix/videos you have taken. Show them the neighbourhood whe you have flown from your garden.

Stop the problems before they start :slight_smile:

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Tell your neighbours ,your flying not spying.
And that most things on the ground are mere dots.

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If you’re living in a terraced street, won’t you be within 50 mtrs of people.
Didn’t someone on here have there insurance claim kicked out 'cause they took off from their garden.

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Yeah, that’s what I am thinking. Obviously if they are not out in their garden then it would be OK, but the chance of everyone doing that, maybe first thing in morning, summer evenings everyone is out, so yeah, that is an issue.

And near a railway line ;o)

Pre rule changes though

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Flying over Railway Lines is illegal according to Network Rail. Of course, how this is enforced is a different matter. Just like the NT topic, but let’s not go there again !!!

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Just roundabouts…

Here is the post from last year, be interesting to see how they recated this time around with an M2 hitting your own house wall.

https://greyarro.ws/t/flyicarus-com-whats-occuring/10098/75

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I TOAL from my garden, hover below fence height to check the settings and home point. Point it so the camera’s not directly looking towards someone’s house then sports mode and straight up to about 50mtr. Taken a few on-request 360s for people that saw a few photos online (not even a pint accepted for them).

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So, according to CAA:

Small drones and model aircraft: below 250g, C0 or C1 class

The rule on minimum distances to people is different when flying small drones and model aircraft that are below 250g, or in C0 or C1 class.

If you’re flying a drone or model aircraft that’s lighter than 250g or is C0 class, you can fly closer to people than 50m and you can fly over them.

  1. Keep at least 150m away from residential, recreational, commercial and industrial areas

150m is the minimum distance
Be prepared to increase the distance if you need to do that to fly safely.

Small drones and model aircraft: below 250g, C0 or C1 class

You can fly small drones and model aircraft that are lighter than 250g, or C0 or C1 class, in residential, recreational, commercial and industrial areas.

Remember, you must always fly safely.

Examples of residential, recreational, commercial and industrial areas

Residential areas include:

  • cities and towns
  • villages
  • housing estates
  • schools

Recreational areas include:

  • tourist attractions
  • sports facilities
  • beaches and parks
  • theme parks

Commercial areas include:

  • shopping centres
  • warehouses
  • business parks

Industrial areas include:

  • factories
  • docks
  • rail and transport hubs

So, I guess I’ve answered my own question. But thank you to everyone for your input. Really appreciate it.

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I’m pretty sure @Jhdee answered it this afternoon for you :rofl:

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That he did.

Kudos @Jhdee

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Under 250g is OK to fly as close as you like to your neighbours but do the decent thing and make sure the camera is facing away from their property as much as possible.
I’m a little confused about you pilot credentials though because I’ve never heard of a test that entitles you to fly in Subcategories A1 and A2. I’m wondering if you mean the A2CofC test or the DMARES test, because they’re very different. The DMARES permits you to fly in Subcategories A1 and A3, with appropriate drones. The A2CofC permits you to fly in Subcategory A2 only, with appropriate drones.

You’re absolutely right. I took the CAA online test to fly in the open category. However, to fly the DJI FPV, which I own, I must hold the A2 CofC Certificate. Since I own that and the Mini 2, and that I want to learn as much as possible about flying, I did everything.

So I took the CAA course for the open category A1 and A3 for the Mini 2 and the A2 CofC course for the FPV.

Of course, come December 31 2022 my FPV won’t be allowed to fly A1 or A2 as its not classed, just transitional.

CAP2012_EU_Drone_Rules_Factsheet_V7 7.pdf (205.9 KB)

I believe my Mini 2 is classed as a legacy per that data sheet, the FPV is an A1 Trasitional. The Mini 2 should, therefore, be fine to fly after 2023.

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Not necessarily, it all depends on where you are flying it

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Oh, ok, that’s good to know. But still, taking all courses isn’t a bad thing, expands your knowledge hopefully.