VA:Woman blasts drone to smitherines over her property

[KLB]

Since I live near DFW airport, I'm going to put up a circle slash airplanes sign on my property, and then I'm going to call the sheriff every time one of those pesky American Airlines flights goes over my house at 5000 ft.

In the early days of aviation, it was that sort of thing that put an end to the previously prevalent notion that property owners held rights "up to heaven."

[KC5AV]

It came over my airspace, 25 or 30 feet above my trees, and hovered for a second. I blasted it to smithereens.

The bolded section might open her up to some additional scrutiny. The pilot and his attorney might try to brand her as a little bit trigger happy.

[Glockster]

It came over my airspace, 25 or 30 feet above my trees, and hovered for a second. I blasted it to smithereens.

The bolded section might open her up to some additional scrutiny. The pilot and his attorney might try to brand her as a little bit trigger happy.

Yeah, as I've been pointing out I think she is going to be hard pressed to make the case for justification in taking this kind of action. A good friend of mine is an attorney in VA, and we used to fly radio control planes together and we each have drones. He would love to take the drone owner on as a client as he has said that he feels that there is an extremely strong case that can be made against her because he says that case law exists to hold that a distance above trees like that is absolutely air space regulated by the FAA and not owned or controlled by the property owner, and that hovering even for a period longer than that won't be shown to be anything of significance.

[MechAg94]

Glockster,

Yes, yes I know, whenever they overstep their boundaries, droners launch into tortured, self-justifying reasons why it's perfectly OK for them to snoop with their wee flying machines.

Why the very thought they'd snoop into someone's personal space, home, yard, is balderdash they say, harrumph!

Not buying it, nope, wouldn't be prudent.

Here's the gist of my view point as it pertains to drones: My yard, stay out of it!

As I am sure you have noted, the drone operators here keep using very specific wording when they defend their operations. It is the same as if you said you would defend yourself from a hand-to-hand attack their rebuttal is that you can't shoot them across the street. Well, if you are across the street, you have nothing to worry about.

In most of these cases, the drone operators always claim they were very high up and the shooters claim they were down low snooping. It is always difficult to prove unless someone pulls out video. Rarely do all the facts appear in the article.

It was interesting to note the comment in the article pointing out that the charges have been dropped against most of the people who shot a drone down.

[Pawpaw]

Glockster,

Yes, yes I know, whenever they overstep their boundaries, droners launch into tortured, self-justifying reasons why it's perfectly OK for them to snoop with their wee flying machines.

Why the very thought they'd snoop into someone's personal space, home, yard, is balderdash they say, harrumph!

Not buying it, nope, wouldn't be prudent.

Here's the gist of my view point as it pertains to drones: My yard, stay out of it!

As I am sure you have noted, the drone operators here keep using very specific wording when they defend their operations. It is the same as if you said you would defend yourself from a hand-to-hand attack their rebuttal is that you can't shoot them across the street. Well, if you are across the street, you have nothing to worry about.

In most of these cases, the drone operators always claim they were very high up and the shooters claim they were down low snooping. It is always difficult to prove unless someone pulls out video. Rarely do all the facts appear in the article.

It was interesting to note the comment in the article pointing out that the charges have been dropped against most of the people who shot a drone down.

If it can be brought down with bird shot, it was not "very high up".

[Abraham]

The paparazzi also claim immunity from being pummeled...insisting they're just going about there cretinous jobs, though their loathsome behavior often results in getting the snot pounded out of them.

Those administering the pummeling don't regret what they've done even if it ends in a lawsuit.

Respect people's privacy or pay the consequences...

Claims of: "Hey man, I can fly my drone and hover it over your yard and house whenever I want to. The law says I can. If you don't like it, tough noogies.

Bam, Bam, Bam!

Buh-by drone!

[Oldgringo]

The paparazzi also claim immunity from being pummeled...insisting they're just going about there cretinous jobs, though their loathsome behavior often results in getting the snot pounded out of them.

Those administering the pummeling don't regret what they've done even if it ends in a lawsuit.

Respect people's privacy or pay the consequences...

Claims of: "Hey man, I can fly my drone and hover it over your yard and house whenever I want to. The law says I can. If you don't like it, tough noogies.

Bam, Bam, Bam!

Buh-by drone!

A fly over is one thing, a stop and stare is a drone of another color.

[Glockster]

Glockster,

Yes, yes I know, whenever they overstep their boundaries, droners launch into tortured, self-justifying reasons why it's perfectly OK for them to snoop with their wee flying machines.

Why the very thought they'd snoop into someone's personal space, home, yard, is balderdash they say, harrumph!

Not buying it, nope, wouldn't be prudent.

Here's the gist of my view point as it pertains to drones: My yard, stay out of it!

As I am sure you have noted, the drone operators here keep using very specific wording when they defend their operations. It is the same as if you said you would defend yourself from a hand-to-hand attack their rebuttal is that you can't shoot them across the street. Well, if you are across the street, you have nothing to worry about.

In most of these cases, the drone operators always claim they were very high up and the shooters claim they were down low snooping. It is always difficult to prove unless someone pulls out video. Rarely do all the facts appear in the article.

It was interesting to note the comment in the article pointing out that the charges have been dropped against most of the people who shot a drone down.

If it can be brought down with bird shot, it was not "very high up".

They are unfortunately fragile and all it could take is one pellet nicking the end of one prop blade to bring it down. So I guess the question becomes how far and high can it go at what angle, etc.

[anygunanywhere]

FAA writing rules that controls the "air space" over people's property. Control is the operative word.

Dirtbags use government control to interfere, snoop, and intrude into people's lives.

Sound familiar? The government enabling bad behavior. That is all the gov is good at these days.

Worthless.

[dwsintxs]

I wouldn't shoot it down, but I would use some sort of device that throws a net up and over it, and 'capture' it. Then I would 'sell' it back to the original owner. I would not be using any 'firearm' illegally to capture it.

Also; I would 'disassemble' it before I allowed the owner to place a bid on it to get it back.

[G.A. Heath]

Here's a scenario for those of you who would destroy of capture a drone over your property to consider:

A farmer is flying a drone to check irrigation and other aspects of his crops. He owns/leases fields on both sides of someone else's private property and flies his drone over their front yard to get from field A to field B. While over the other persons property he stops his drone for some reason. Maybe it's because he got a phone call and stopped to answer it, maybe it's because his controller temporarily lost signal and his drone stops where it is at in that event, maybe someone's wifi is interfering with the drone's signal, but for some reason other than snooping he stopped. Now the Private property owner takes offense at this dang gadget snooping on him and manages to capture or destroy it.

The farmer has done nothing wrong, however the private property owner has potentially caused thousands of dollars of damage to someone else private property because it was over their land.

In all honesty drone operators need to get to work on their public image, and the public needs to realize that shooting down a drone can have serious consequences.

[Pawpaw]

I have serious doubts about anyone shooting down a drone for a one time short-term event, such as described in the article. It seems to me that it would be pretty easy to tell if it's an aerial peeping tom or an innocent happenstance.

I have serious doubts this lady just happened to decide to clean her guns, on her front porch nonetheless, and these guys just happened to pull up, set up a table, and start flying their drone. Possible? Yes. Probable? No. I think it's much more likely it's been an ongoing occurrence.

Why else would she just happen to have some ammo handy? At the very least, she had time to go inside to get ammo. I just thought of a possible answer to my own question - Maybe she normally keeps the 20ga loaded and unloaded it then and there before cleaning it.

[TexasTornado]

I have serious doubts about anyone shooting down a drone for a one time short-term event, such as described in the article. It seems to me that it would be pretty easy to tell if it's an aerial peeping tom or an innocent happenstance.

I have serious doubts this lady just happened to decide to clean her guns, on her front porch nonetheless, and these guys just happened to pull up, set up a table, and start flying their drone. Possible? Yes. Probable? No. I think it's much more likely it's been an ongoing occurrence.

Why else would she just happen to have some ammo handy? At the very least, she had time to go inside to get ammo. I just thought of a possible answer to my own question - Maybe she normally keeps the 20ga loaded and unloaded it then and there before cleaning it.

How I imagine her telling this story:

'I was just sittin there on my porch one mornin, mindin my own business, cleanin my ol shotgun, and don't ya know one of those new fangle flyin gizmos happened on over. I just loaded that ol shotgun and dropped that nuisance right out of the sky. These darn kids and their electronics it just ain't the way it was back in the day I tell you what. Got my ol shotgun all dirty again too.'

[Steve Lebe]

If she was able to shoot it down, either she had a stinger missile or the drone was flying too low and loitering.