What could I do with Mini that I can't do with my M2Z?

General Drone Discussion
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Hi all. As you may have seen, I spend a lot of time flying over fish farms with my Mavic 2 Zoom. Regarding legalities etc. is there anything I could do with a Mavic Mini that I can’t do with my M2Z? I’m thinking of getting one just for the sake of always having it with me but the worry is I won’t be able to get as close.
Are there any aspects of the drone code that don’t apply to under 250g, such as the 50m rule?

2

I think there’s only one thing you can do with the Mini that is far less easy with the M2 … and that’s slip it into a jacket pocket.

Range is significantly less.

The same drone code applies to all drones.

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3

You can get blown away easier lol

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4

One should emphasise that doesn’t refer to the “seriously impressed” kind of “blown away” … just the physical version. :wink:

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5

Definitely, well spotted and thanks for making it clear lol

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6

Thanks Dave. That’s pretty much what I thought but wondered if I’d missed anything.

7

:rofl: :rofl:

And there’s a lot of wind up here!

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8

Until next year, when there will be significantly more that can be done with a Mavic Mini than a Mavic 2 Zoom, at least in terms of having to give much less of a shit as to whether any “uninvolved persons” may be in the vicinity of the fish farm.

  • M2Z without A2 CofC: can’t fly if any uninvolved persons around.
  • M2Z with A2 CofC: fly no closer than 50m to uninvolved persons, and not above them.
  • MM: fly as close as you like, and overhead, so long as you don’t endanger anybody.

However … as the Mavic Mini will have a shorter VLOS range due to its size, the M2Z may still be preferable so you can fly it at a longer range.

The other big bonus when the rules change is there will no longer be any specified separation distances to structures, vehicles etc. If nobody is around, you will be able to fly as close to the fish farm as is safe to do so.

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9

Thanks very much for that. It seems like quite a big deal then. So, for a couple of years, with an A2 C of C, flying the Zoom will be the same or better and then after June 2022 it’ll be pretty worthless in terms of s/h value!

Seems like it might be worth getting both a Mavic Mini AND an A2 C of C then.

10

I’d hold back on the CofC, prices are dropping wholesale for online courses, and it looks like the race to the bottom has begun.

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11

UAVHub were offering an A2 CofC course for £99 the other day (very much a one-off deal) so maybe for those considering it, it would be worth getting on a few providers’ mailing lists and keeping an eye out for discount deals.

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12

I totally missed all this a2 stuff, can you do commercial work on it?

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That’s a whole different thread guys.

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