Interim Order Respecting the Use of Model Aircraft (Drones)

[J31]

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada- ... -1.4027486

http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/mediaroom/inter ... craft.html

Recreational drone users in Canada face new restrictions on where and when they can fly their remote-controlled devices, under new rules being announced today by Transportation Minister Marc Garneau.

The rules, which are effective immediately, mean recreational users will face a fine of up to $3,000 if drones weighing more than 250 grams are caught flying:

Higher than 90 metres.
Within 75 metres of buildings, vehicles, vessels, animals or people.
More than 500 metres away from the user.
At night, in clouds or somewhere you can't see it.
Within nine kilometres of somewhere aircraft take off or land, or a forest fire.
Without your name, address and phone number marked on the drone itself.
Over forest fires, emergency response scenes or controlled airspace.

[hangar3]

So basically you can't fly them anywhere...
Also, how are they going to enforce this?

[Roar]

I was wondering that myself. How exactly will anyone determine if a drone is flying at say a legal 85 metres or and illegal 91?

[AirFrame]

I was wondering that myself. How exactly will anyone determine if a drone is flying at say a legal 85 metres or and illegal 91?

Sieze the drone, and look at the recorded footage of the flight from the onboard camera with altitude, airspeed, and lat/long in the lower corner. Don't they all have that capability now? Many will have the capability of recording that data even if they aren't displaying it on the video. But for people flying in public places where they might get noticed or detained by local authorities, it would probably make sense to stay well within the limits, and keep the track logs as proof.

[Inverted2]

"Higher than 90 metres.
Within 75 metres of buildings, vehicles, vessels, animals or people.
More than 500 metres away from the user."

So you basically can't fly them anymore. There will always be animals of some kind within 75 meters of it. Also: Would you have to step back 75 meters before it takes off?

[B208]

Guys.....this is just knee jerk window dressing meant to calm the public. It wasn't meant to be effective, useful or in anyway connected with reality; In other words its exactly what one would expect from the Liberals. I miss Harper.

[185_guy]

The easy answer to fly models of any shape and size is to fly at a MAAC club. There are clubs almost everywhere. Or, form a club. Get a proper flying site and follow the MAAC safety code which is not hard to do. You can get a MAAC sanctioned field/site or an event sanctioned and be closer than 9km to an airport. Many clubs are at airports, they will not be shutting down because of this law.
Who this effects mostly are the quadcopter (drone) users who like to fly in towns and cities, from parks, flying overtop of people and houses making cool videos. It may also effect some people/groups who race 'FPV" quads and aircraft outside of a club environment.
I doubt a cop is going to bother with anyone unless they are disturbing people and causing a problem. When an OPP comes up to me with a rangefinder and a scale to make sure i'm legal, i'll be damned!
Hopefully this law will make some copter pilots think twice about when/where they launch. Its only been the last 5-10 years these things have become easy for anyone to afford/fly. Before that, it was many hours of gluing, cutting soldering and learning to get anything RC into the air.

[rxl]

Pretty hard to not see this coming.

[Heliian]

I was initially pissed off at this and it solidifies my dislike for Garneau and all of the other ministers who come in to their posts and make uneducated changes for media glory. They can all go pound sand.

Good luck on getting enforcement in all but the most blatant cases, the local fuzz won't even know where to start and TC is woefully underfunded and under staffed. Maybe spaceboy should have focused on that first.

[hangar3]

I was initially pissed off at this and it solidifies my dislike for Garneau and all of the other ministers who come in to their posts and make uneducated changes for media glory. They can all go pound sand.

Actually, I thought Garneau should have been better for the aviation/space sector given his background. I'm surprised he'd roll out something this vague.

[Inverted2]

Me too, but he is a Lieberal after all. Maybe he got into Justin's stash of space cakes.

[BE20 Driver]

I thought I saw an exemption for survey/commercial work in one of the original articles I read a few days ago. Maybe someone else on here has a link that shows that - I couldn't find it when I went to look for it again.

[woodzi]

So basically you can't fly them anywhere...

It is illegal for us (we have Private Pilot Licences) to fly our drone at our private grass strip (aerodrome).

[telex]

There will always be animals of some kind within 75 meters of it.

I suspect the intent is pertaining to wildlife and using the drone as an aid to hunting.