Hi guys and girls been and got myself a mavic mini today and was wondering if I got one of them sticker kits would it go over the 249g as I can’t see how a sticker kit would make much difference so if anyone is owt there is flying a mavic mini with a sticker kit on how much does it weigh
At the moment the law allows you to fly without registration and limit (almost) at under 250gm. HOWEVER later on this year the European rules will kick in meaning that the MM or any other drone over 250g with a camera will have to be registered and obey the flight rules, etc because of its MTOM maximum takeoff mass. I’ll try and explain. The MTOM is what the drone would weigh if all it’s accessories were added, such as prop guards, stickers, leg extenders, which put the MM well over 250g. It won’t matter that the main body is 249g, it’s what it could weigh. A simple analogy is that I cannot drive a 16 seater minibus because my licence doesn’t allow it, even if there’s only me in it, I would have to be licenced and tested to drive it because of the potential to have up to 16 people. Same with drones, there is the potential to have a mass of more than 250g. So my advice, at the moment, nobody is going to be weighing your drone cos the MTOM rules don’t apply yet, so put stickers on, don’t worry about it, and enjoy flying free.
2 Likes
What if I keep my drone under 249g would I still need to register it
Yes. After July 2020.
Its all about the MTOM (maximum take off mass). It doesnt matter if you keep the weight down to 249g after July, it’s the weight it could weigh with all the accessories on.
As I say I cant legally drive a 16 seater Minibus, even if it’s empty, it’s still a 16 seater bus. Same with MM, it would need registering after July, even without all the accessories fitted, because it can POTENTIALLY be heavier than 250g. Same as I could POTENTIALLY carry 16 people in a MINIBUS, so need to be licensed to do so.
Thanks for the info Brain only go the mini coz I don’t after pay the £9 fee the test I agree on but the fee I don’t but that’s just my opinion.
What’s the test like and what questions do they ask if u don’t mind me asking
The test is 20 multiple choice questions of which you have to get 16 right. You can take it as many times as you need.
If you read and understand the drone code you will have no problems.
A couple of the questions need to be read more than once to understand what they are looking for but most are straightforward.
Like: You are flying near an event where there are 100 people. What is the closest distance you can fly toward the event?
400 feet
150 metres
50 metres
50 feet
the test is fairly straightforward, all about safety and common sense, all the answers are in the drone code and you can attempt it as many times you like until you get it right, its more about educating people than a test. they are multiple choice answers to the test, so for example.
What is the maximum height above ground level you are allowed to fly a drone?
400ft 1000ft 10000ft.
How high are you allowed to fly above a crowd of 100 people
similarly how high do you need to be away from a crowd of 1000 people such as an open air concert that sort of thing.
These are the sort of things they ask, which everyone should be aware of anyway to see if you understand the drone code and use a bit of common sense. its not hard, and as I say, you can have as many goes as you like until you get the pass.
150m I do believe
400ft and 150m I do believe
Yup. Easy peasy
One other thing been reading the drone code and it shows a person flying a drone at 400ft and there is a hill and show 400ft on top of the hill so does that mean if im on a hill can I still fly at a altitude of 400ft or would I after reduce the altitude ?
You can still fly up to a max ceiling of 400ft
So say for instance I’m down a vally flying my drone at 400ft and decided to walk to the top of a mountain to fly my drone I’m still ok to take it to 400ft ?
Yes
Thanks tchambers 
1 Like
Yes it’s 400ft above ground level (AGL) so if you are stood on the top of a hill which is 400ft high, you can fly your drone 400ft above the hill, as you fly away and down the slope of a hill you should descend the drone so it is maintaining no more than 400ft max height above the ground, as it reaches the valley floor it should be still 400ft at maximum above the ground. Even if you are still stood on the top of the hill with your controller in your mits.
3 Likes
1 Like