Officials Halt Drone Operator Trying to Aid Colorado Responders

There are TFR's to allow safe environment for real rescue aircraft.
 
Satchmo10th said:
Not arguing that. I just would have expected the "knock it off" call to come from the FAA not FEMA.
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"FEMA" is a catchall term. Airspace is being managed via local Air Operations Branch Directors at the area Incident Management Team, who are coordinating through the joint Federal/State Emergency Operations Center, with the Air Ops Branch coordinating with on-site DOT and FAA coordinators.
Airspace management, in turn is being worked by both DOT/FAA and DoD airspace management and safety personnel, because there's a mix of civilian fixed wing and rotor, plus National Guard and active duty rotor operations, plus CAP overhead imagery flights.

It's easier to say "FEMA".

They are very protective of the airspace, there's WAY too many aircraft going too many places. They have ingress and egress route, exclusion zones, lanes, etc, to maintain horizontal and vertical separation in a low altitude, nonradar environment. Think the Airventure notam on steroids.
 
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A good AOBD that knows how to set up such, is worth their weight in gold.

Methinks the drone operator got a big lesson in what "TFR" means.

And as Alan points out, there's definitely a right way and a wrong way to operate inside a TFR. It starts with a phone call to the managing authority printed in the text version of every TFR. Popping up inside one is probably not the best way to introduce yourself to the world.

It isn't THAT hard to get permission nor to coordinate with the AOBD.

The fact that the drone company went straight to whining on their blog, IEEE picked it up, then TechDirt, then every Tech news aggregator on the planet, kinda shows where the operator's attitude and priorities were.

Time better spent talking to the AOBD and seeing if the photography product was even needed, or working with the ICS staff to explain who needed it and why.

The railroads and pipeline folks easily got clearances and time/altitude coordination for their surveys with private aircraft, which proves it's 100% "do-able" to get a request to the appropriate folks and have a flight "deconflicted" with other known traffic. They even popped a time slot and area open for the Press helo.

All ya gotta do is ask, properly.

Basic ICS courses to speak the language of modern emergency response, are free and available on the Internet...
 
A couple of my friends who are "trapped" up there (could get out if they wanted) said FEMA's been flying helicopters all over and provided them with folding chairs, extension cords, and lights.

If it sounds ridiculous to you, it sounded even more ridiculous to them.

Meanwhile, the local Jeep guys have just been going up the washed out roads because they have Jeeps (and disappointed that the trail wasn't more challenging) to bring dog food and cigarettes, which were much more appreciated.
 
Ted DuPuis said:
A couple of my friends who are "trapped" up there (could get out if they wanted) said FEMA's been flying helicopters all over and provided them with folding chairs, extension cords, and lights.

If it sounds ridiculous to you, it sounded even more ridiculous to them.
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Maybe they assumed the people who stayed had their own generators. I know people out here who do, although I don't.
 
Everskyward said:
Maybe they assumed the people who stayed had their own generators. I know people out here who do, although I don't.
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Well, they live 100% off-grid. So they're operating just like any other day. :)
 
From the article: "What was irritating was how they did it. All the helicopters were up in the mountains and canyons doing search and rescue. I was in the flatlands, where there was nobody else up in the air. They didn't ask if I was a hobbyist or professional. They didn't ask about my capabilities. They didn't ask if I was taking live video or still shots. They just said no drone flights, or I'd be arrested."

Air Branch during an incident is a busy place. There's no time to vet and qualify every bozo who shows up with an airplane -- model, drone, or real. Especially if they show up, uninvited, in the airspace. At that point they've already flunked the IQ test.

What this "professional" should have done and should now do (after the incident) is to contact whomever handles emergency management in his area and show them his stuff. If he is what he claims to be and has capabilities that might be helpful, they may be interested in adding him to their list of resources. But during an incident, the chances of this happening are close to zero.
 
FEMA is the agency that made guys who starting post-Katrina cleanup stop less they be arrested.

They don't want people doing good willy-nilly while FEMA is filling out the TPS reports to requisition more paper.
 
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