Bit of a long story I know:
I was across in Barrow-in-Furness & as usual, had my Mini2 in the car. Seeing an opportunity to grab some nicely sun lit shots of a ship in the docks I checked on dronscene & drone assist app, the area I was wanting to fly - all good.
Reported an intended flight as I always do when around built up areas to the local police on 101. Got my report number after a pleasant chat stating details & locations, awareness of the FRZ, Restricted area around BAE Systems. & higher risk areas - again all good
Sent up the Mini2 & @2 mins in I was passed by a police 4x4. Carried on shooting video & stills to have said 4x4 return & stop @ 10 mins later. (Mini2 still in the air about 70m away & 40m up)
Out jumps mr plod x2 âCan we speak to you about your drone?â âSureâ I replied âbut can you not distract me & let me land please.â To which the younger of the two officers carried on talking stood right next to me. I asked him to step back & away whilst I landed also telling them if I shout âdrone failâ they needed to take avoiding action & cover their heads. OMG! Officer 1âs reaction!! âYou telling me you canât control your drone!â comes in a loud voice in my ear. Seriously, what an idiot he is.
After bringing it back & hand catching trying to step as far away from numbty officer as I could get (@ 2m me between the drone & him due to him following me around). He then started to quote âYou need to be a safe distance from people (really), vehicles & buildingsâ replying that Iâm fully aware of the rules, showing him ID, my GVC & insurance details. I went on to state his colleagues should be aware of my flight as Iâd logged it with Cumbria Police. âThatâs not us, is it, weâre BNC! Havenât you had equipment confiscated by us? You canât fly in Barrowâ he then went on to start referencing in an aggressive manor the ANO incorrectly. (Well, the old pre jan21 rules). Stopping him, telling him, âno Iâve had no issues with the police or anyone confiscating equipment. My drone falls under the sub 250g classâ & asking him the date of the rules heâs referring to, âThereâs no such rule regarding weight!â he pulled out his phone & looked. â2015!â I mentioned they were updated on 1/1/21 - back to his phone he went.
His colleague now chirped up saying that I know my stuff & asked me to show him the drone. I also showed the Drone Assist app & the area we were in. That it was outside any restrictions. Showed him CAP722 doc on my phone & the relevant pages re legacy subcategory / classâs.
This officer was very respectful, taking in what I was showing him whilst numbty boy was still searching his phone. Chatting about the rule changes & sizes. The upcoming change in jan23 & risks etc we were making inroads into educating those who enforce I said they need to speak to their drone units for crib sheets but the BNC donât have one Numbty officer then chips up âHmm looks like what weâve got is out of dateâ to his colleague. âYeh I saw it on Marks phone. Quite informativeâ
I asked officer 2 if he wanted to fly it (under my supervision of course) he declined but asked if I could launch it up & he could watch & see on screen. Duly obliged with a quick 2 min up/spin/ down - he now wants one
Numbty just huffed.
Moral: Non-confrontational will win the day so long as your able to back up what youâre saying
Hiya @MTLakes, I enjoyed your story, my hubby is calm like you. I get tongue tied! Iâm new around here, I was wondering if you would explain (like Iâm 5) a sentence for me please?
Are we supposed to phone 101 as well as an intended fligtht on the app thingy? Do they tell you straight away? Would you use it for training/ learning flights? Sorry for asking, I havnât seen this anywhere else, so my brain has just started backfiring!
Well done @MTLakes, although I guess itâs hardly news after the last two years that our police forces are full of ill-informed idiots with no idea about the laws they are called upon to enforce (alongside the reasonable and sensible ones).
Well done for being calm and getting the right result!
For the vast majority of flights you have no need to inform anyone. If, like Mark, you are close to a sensitive area (but not overflying it) it makes sense to let authorities know. Then if a concerned citizen phones to say that a terrorist is flying a drone into a military installation the authorities (Police on 101) can say that they are aware and happy that nothing untoward is going on.
Most normal flying wonât need any precautions but there are occasions when it is sensible to take pre-emptive action.
For instance there are certain things I want to photograph almost within the Goodwood airfield flight restriction zone. They are outside the area by 200 metres or so. I will let Goodwood ATC know what I intend to do and when. Then any sighting by pilots or ground observers can be explained by ATC when they are contacted.
It is a good idea to have documentation to hand, whether printed out or on your phone - flyer and operator id, insurance (if any), qualifications and copies of the latest legislation.
Add Drone Scene to your phone home screen so that you can show FRZ and other restrictions and where you are in relation to them.
Be calm, polite and firm. Look as though you have a right to be there and look confident. Wearing a hi-viz vest always helps with looking âofficialâ
But donât get hung up on the need for full precautions - in 99 cases out of a hundred you should be able to just relax and enjoy your flight.
fwiw I always have the following documentation with me, usually several print outs just in case. Others wonât necessary agree with giving out name and flyer/operator IDs, itâs up to you.
The only time Iâve ever had to provide the information was when ITV wanted to use my footage on their local TV news bulletin and wanted to make sure I wasnât just some charlie throwing a drone up in the sky with no responsibly near a fire.
For the most part drone confrontation is something that will rarely happen, but if it is does itâs best to be prepared for it.
As well as letting Police know in a questionable area, Iâll also do a risk assessment and flight plan basically to cover my arse if anything happens. These templates are pretty bad as they are our work ones and I havenât been arsed to update the formatting. Most of this is overkill for personal/recreational and I rarely do any of it unless common sense dictates I should.
I went google hunting as soon as I read that and all my meagre search skills came up with âreport a drone userâ lol!
Thank you so very much Rob for explaining it to me. I now understand! I have drone scene and altitude angel (and my bank app where my insurance is) on my phone. I had put my flyer and operator ID in my bag but after having a look at the info Ade has posted Iâll be adding to my paper pile. Iâm ex-mod so I like to have my rear end covered so to speak! And thatâs what it boils down too isnât it. Being prepared and knowing the rules for your (fly) area.
Thanks so much Ade for posting the paper trail. It makes me warm and happy to be prepared. My husband is super calm thankfully.
Thanks all, I thought Iâd got it but there was blurb about a two-way confirmation. I wasnât sure what this entails and assumed Iâd find an email with a link in it, but didnât?
@eastsuffolkdrone If youâre having trouble accessing Drone Scene please start a new thread in the #drone-scene category and weâll try to keep this thread on the subject of interactions with the British Nuclear Constabulary.
Indeed they are but letâs face it, a middle aged fat fella looking up at the skies - theyâd need a stronger reason to draw a sidearm out. Too much paperwork
I mentioned they were updated on 1/1/21 - back to his phone he went.
Numbty officer then chips up âHmm looks like what weâve got is out of dateâ to his colleague. âYeh I saw it on Marks phone. Quite informativeâ
) to keep their crew up to date.
