Seen on the street in Kyiv.

Words of Advice:

"If Something Seems To Be Too Good To Be True, It's Best To Shoot It, Just In Case." -- Fiona Glenanne

“The Mob takes the Fifth. If you’re innocent, why are you taking the Fifth Amendment?” -- The TOFF *

"Foreign Relations Boil Down to Two Things: Talking With People or Killing Them." -- Unknown

“Speed is a poor substitute for accuracy.” -- Real, no-shit, fortune from a fortune cookie

"If you believe that you are talking to G-d, you can justify anything.” — my Dad

"Colt .45s; putting bad guys in the ground since 1873." -- Unknown

"Stay Strapped or Get Clapped." -- probably not Mr. Rogers

"The Dildo of Karma rarely comes lubed." -- Unknown

"Eck!" -- George the Cat

* "TOFF" = Treasonous Orange Fat Fuck, A/K/A Dolt-45,
A/K/A Commandante (or Cadet) Bone Spurs,
A/K/A El Caudillo de Mar-a-Lago, A/K/A the Asset., A/K/A P01135809

Sunday, March 15, 2015

Do I Need a CPL to Take Aerial Photographs and Video?

I've taken both aerial photos and in-flight videos. The videos get posted to YouTube before I put them here. I've posted aerial photos on Facebook.

Both YouTube and Facebook have ads. I don't see any of the money from them.

One would think that neither activity on my part would be a commercial one, in that I'm not getting paid.

But if a drone driver posts video on YouTube, now the FAA thinks that's a commercial use of the drone?

How nuts is that?

And even if one films something and the images can later be sold, unless one set out on the flight with the intent of making money from it, it's a hard stretch to argue that the flight was a commercial one.

5 comments:

LRod said...

The defining phrase always used to be "carrying passengers for hire". Never said anything about doing work for money in the course of aviating.

LRod
ZJX, ORD, ZAU retired

Deadstick said...

So, a private pilot can cropdust?

Deadstick said...

So, a private pilot can cropdust?

mikey said...

Somebody better tell Jim Fallows...

BadTux said...

The FAA, when contacted about this story, basically said "Huh? That's crazy, we actually did that?" The speculation is that the Florida branch office checked the wrong boxes on the form letter generator and meant to check the "irresponsible flight" box instead of the "commercial flight" box.

Never ascribe to malice what can be ascribed to incompetence. Especially when talking about the FAA. SIGH.