Hi everyone, I’m new to everything but recently bought a DJI Mini 3. Yet to fly as I actually live in an NFZ but living in Cornwall (In my case the Penwith area) it seems that almost 90% of the scenic locations around are either National Trust, SSSI’s or NFZ and I’m not entirely sure where I’m actually allow to TL/L without ending up doing the wrong thing!
I’ve seen that a fair bit of St Ives seems to be free but outside of that I’ve found the whole thing quite puzzling and wondered if anyone would be able to help? If it’s SSSI (which most of the coast seems to be) does that imply it should be a no-fly area in all instances?
If anyone could help that would be great, I’m hoping to be able to try things out somewhere but not sure where without ending up in trouble! Thanks!
Not a local, but heading down to Cornwall this weekend for a break so I’ve done a bit of research as I’m taking the drones.
If you click on the SSSI in Drone Scene you can get the link to the citation for the site itself, they are worth a read to then make a call on if you think you should fly or not. A number of the SSSI are for flora and / or rock formations, in which case IMHO its fine to fly as long as you stay within the normal trails etc, and assuming all other things are taken into account.
Where it gets a bit trickier, is when the SSSI is for Birds, as you could cause pressure flying a drone around, especially if in nesting season or if there are young around.
For other warning zones, its really about reading as much information as you can and making an informed decisions based on your view of the risks etc.
Any airfield NFZs are a clear no fly without permission.
Ther’s a blue NOTAM to be aware of regarding RF signal jamming which covers the whole county an a good bit of Devon as well, active tomorrow and Friday (5th &6th), and airport (Penzance & Newquay)/military airbase FRZ around the Lizard peninsula. You can fly in these red airport/airbase FRZ by applying for permission online and contacting ATC when you are about to fly. They will want to know where you are snd what you intend to do during the flight, and are by all accounts amenable unless you are learly going to be in conflict with their operations. I’ve never done this, only read accounts of it on this site. They appreciate a phone call to tell them when you’ve finished!
Then there are the yellow areas, which include SSSIs as well as other possible hazards that you need to be aware of, like railways, power lines, sensitive locations like schools and hospitals, and places where there are likely to be crowds at times. You can fly over them, but common sense is needed to interpret the nature of the hazard; for instance, coastal SSSIs will usually have breeding and pup-rearing seal populations at this time of year, that might be spooked by a low-flying drone, but will be fine if you keep to a reasonable height and film them with the zoom. A park might be in a yellow Ground Hazard area because there, may be crowds on weekend when the local footie leagues are in action,
National Trust don’t allow you to TOALfrom their property (neither do various water authorities, the Forestry Commission, British Waterways, or English Heritage and their Welsh & Scottish counterparts), but you are allowed to overfly them within the confines of being able to maintain VLOS of your drone; again, keep high enough to not bother people on the ground. Most will be unaware of your presence if you are more than about 120’ ASL anyway.
Legal obligations and general good advice is contained in the CAA’s Drone Code, on their website.
This is great thank you everyone who has replied! I think for now I’m going to play it safe and stick to where I know I’ll be good to try and get used to things - all feels rather weird not being able to practice and get used to the controls at my house first!
I understand and sympathise. I use my local recreation ground for practice, but when it’s quiet.
You will soon get used to the sticks and how to fly the drone, and start feeling more at ease with it, relocating it when you’ve looked away at the screen, and understanding the information the screen provides. Then you can try some course flying; squares, triangles, figure 8s, learning how to fly smooth changes of direction while panning the camera. Practice as much as you can; your aim is to commit these moves to ‘muscle memory’.
Start off in ‘C’ (Cine) mode for the most finely controlled and gentle movements, then go to ‘N’ (Normal) or ‘S’ (Sports) as you feel the need to. Fly high; it’s safer when you are above trees and buildings and don’t have fo worry about them, and keep well clear of trees. Trees, as anyone here will tell you, are dicks.
When you progress to coastal flying (which, living in Cornwall you’re bound to), you’ll beed to be aware of the possibility of bird mob attack from gulls and especially oystercatchers, so practice avoidance. This involves switching into S mode and flying vertically upwards as fast as possible on dull throttle; a drone can ascend much faster than a bird, which gains altitude by climbing at an angle like an aeroplane.
Another useful technique to learn is hand launching and catching; there will be occasions on which uou will want to keep your drone off muddy or dirty ground, and sand will get everwher le if you land on a beach. Get the drone into a hover about 15’ up, move into position, and bring it down all the way with the stick; don’t try to auto-land because the drone will move upwards when it realises your hand is not the ground, great comedy value for onlookers! Hold it by the fuselage amidships and wait for the props to stop before anything else!
Happy landings, let us know how you get on and ask questions, that’s what we’re here for!
