attempted Inspire 1 shoot down over neighbor's yard... need help synching flight data for police

Mavic Mac · Aug 22, 2020

It seems response to the OP are getting off track. From my understanding of the OP the operator was practicing flying the drone not taking photographs of neighbors and/or their homes. Based on that I don't see where it would be required to get approval to fly his drone in legal airspace. Just MHO

Jeepguy1961 · Aug 22, 2020

Actually I consider myself more of an RC airplane guy. The Sopwith I finished this year with my grandson, the super cub is a Hangar 9 with my yorkie

Mavic Mac said:
Thumbs up for the LEO that was willing to investigate it. So many times all you hear about is someone flying being "hassled" by the police. Unfortunately without some type of documentation if an arrest was made it would come down to the LEO's word against the word of the shooter. Depending on the court it is very likely the case would be dismissed.

Unfortunately it sounds like you have a flaming gaping **** for a neighbor. It is a sad state of affairs when we have to live like this, but as @Donnie Frank posted it may pay to install some cameras on your property.

Mavic Mac said:
It seems response to the OP are getting off track. From my understanding of the OP the operator was practicing flying the drone not taking photographs of neighbors and/or their homes. Based on that I don't see where it would be required to get approval to fly his drone in legal airspace. Just MHO

Thanks Mavic, and that's what the deputy thought as well. One thing I've learned in my 60 years is that everybody's got an opinion of the legality of any given situation but the only one that counts is the guy with a badge or my lawyer LOL. I sincerely appreciate everyone's opinion as it helps shape my response to the situation.. but the one thing I can say for sure in this experience is that even people in positions of authority all seem to have a different take on drones.

Special thanks to BudWalker for the detailed instructions on getting the flight details out of the bird!

Starz · Aug 22, 2020

I’ve always looked at the guy with the badge as the messenger.
(I’ve had several messages)
The one that counts is the one called “Your Honor”.

JimD · Aug 22, 2020

Ralph thompson said:
I agree that it’s never ok to shoot at a drone and I hope the shooter is prosecuted. Respect for others is important, walk in the other persons shoes. Pilots flying rotary wing and fixed wing aircraft fly above 500’ & 1000’ respectively except for takeoff & landing or training exercises, and are very likely to loose their license if the abused their privileges. There are privacy laws in most countries that specify your right to take a photograph and what you can do with the image, and that includes your right to photograph property. A person on the ground doesn't know if you are photographing. Why not ask permission first, common courtesy.

So if I’m doing a real estate shoot your proposition is that I canvas the neighborhood first and get everybody’s permission because they or their house might wind up in one of my shots?
Or if I’m in a shopping center doing a roof inspection and somebody should walk into the shot I should land run over and ask their permission?
Even from 150 feet you can’t make anybody out.
And I’ll tell you another thing it would just be something else for them to worry about when they really have no need to know.

And yet they seem to have no problem turning over their privacy to Mark Zuckerberg.
And I’ll tell you another thing it would just be something else for them to worry about when they really have no need to know.

Jeepguy1961 · Aug 23, 2020

Starz said:
I’ve always looked at the guy with the badge as the messenger.
(I’ve had several messages)
The one that counts is the one called “Your Honor”.

You sir, are correct!

Mavic Mac · Aug 23, 2020

Starz said:
I’ve always looked at the guy with the badge as the messenger.
(I’ve had several messages)
The one that counts is the one called “Your Honor”.

But the one important fact to take into consideration is how well the "messenger" delivers the message so the one called "Your Honor" can make the correct decision. In my 20+ years as a LEO I have seen some "messengers" inadequately prepare and present their case to the court. In those situations, “Your Honor’s” options are greatly limited, and the outcome of the case is not what was hoped for. Evidence speaks louder than words.

Jeepguy1961 · Aug 23, 2020

Mavic Mac said:
But the one important fact to take into consideration is how well the "messenger" delivers the message so the one called "Your Honor" can make the correct decision. In my 20+ years as a LEO I have seen some "messengers" inadequately prepare and present their case to the court. In those situations, “Your Honor’s” options are greatly limited, and the outcome of the case is not what was hoped for. Evidence speaks louder than words.

For sure... The LEO that made contact with me said that drones weren't considered aircraft. I'm an AMA member also and that statement was contrary to what I've always read in the AMA magazine which is why I called the local FAA office for clarification. They said most certainly they are considered aircraft and what the neighbor did was highly illegal.
So there you go, a glaring discrepancy between the authorities which we trust are giving us accurate info. Who do I believe lol.
So I'm just going to go through the motions, give the LEO what he says he needs, and not put any hope into it. At the bare minimum it will put him on notice that if he shoots it down he's going to create a whole new set of headaches for himself (the neighbor).

On a side note I still have the original phantom 3 and think next time I put one up I will keep the inspire out of harm's way haha

Thanks for the valuable input, I really do appreciate it and read your comment with close attention?

Flying Monkey · Dec 19, 2020

Fallguy said:
I had someone take a shot at my P4 4 years ago . At the time I thought I had busted a few teenagers doing a drug deal at a local pond. I even posted a funny video about it here. But then after looking at the video close up , I realized that one of these kids took a shot at my drone.
I contacted police through email and uploaded video , but never heard back from them.
There was no damage to the P4 and I had a good story to tell.

Your drone sounds alot like a Bell Jet Ranger

Flying Monkey · Dec 19, 2020

Jeepguy1961 said:
Hi Everyone,

Im an older guy who bought an Inspire 1 Pro looking to supplement my retirement. I am studying for my 107 and was practicing flight at about 165' AGL and flight path took it over my neighbor's yard about 600' down range of home. His garage blocks my view of his back porch so when I heard 3 shotgun blasts I suspected they were directed at the drone but couldn't prove it. Unfortunately I live in rural southern Ohio with a lot of chemical dependency and this guy is the poster child.

Fast forward 3 weeks and a local sheriff deputy was investigating a disturbance and this guy for whatever bizarre logic bragged to the cop that he tried to shoot my DJI down. What a moron...

So the deputy came to my house and said if I can provide my flight data for that day, he will look into charging him (something about 1st degree endangerment)

Thats my pickle... I have this guy in a teaching moment and tried a cloud synch last night but nothing... only got up to April 2019. Then I got the bright idea to delete the DJI Go app and reinstall and that made it worse. Ive got no local cache of flight data and I am getting a "Sychronizing Flight Records Failed" in the attached screen shot.. I have WIFI on, I logged into my DJI account. Still get the message. What the heck am I doing wrong???

You're not shooting back !

attempted Inspire 1 shoot down over neighbor's yard... need help synching flight data for police

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