The use of drone cameras over heritage railways

Has any of our heritage railways banned the use of these things over their property ?

Can this be legally enforced on health & safety grounds ?


Bob.

 

People have been droning on for sometime....

https://www.national-preservation.com/threads/attack-of-the-drones.263802/


Coat, taxi.....

 

If used responsibly, I don't think they need to be a safety issue, I very much enjoyed this video published some months ago now, I expect I've linked to it before in these sort of discussions, but I do enjoy it, music's great too. I imagine it would be difficult to hand out "Airside" passes with some basic guidelines as with lineside photographers? Perhaps volunteer enforcement officers could be supplied with air rifles if they find any that are getting too close as another solution...

 

A man who flew a small unmanned aircraft over Alton Towers, endangering the safety of the theme park’s customers, has pleaded guilty to two separate charges at Stafford Magistrates Court. The court heard Mark Spencer, 34, had flown his quadcopter device over a number of rides at the Staffordshire attraction on 9 November 2013, brining it within close proximity to people as he filmed the course of the flight using an onboard camera. The video was subsequently posted on YouTube.
Mr Spencer, of Stoke on Trent, who was standing in the car park of Alton Towers while he flew his aircraft, was charged with the following offences, once the video had been brought to the attention of the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
(1) Not maintaining direct, unaided visual contact with a small unmanned aircraft
Articles 166(3) and 241(6), Air Navigation Order 2009
(2) Flying a small unmanned surveillance aircraft over or within 150 metres of any congested area
Articles 167(1), 167(2)(a) and 241(6), Air Navigation Order 2009.
Magistrates fined Mr Spencer £150 for each offence (£300 total) and ordered him to pay a contribution towards the CAA’s costs of £250.
The CAA said the case sent a message to recreational users of small unmanned aircraft that the devices are subject to aviation safety rules.

 

Further to the above, it should not be forgotten that the radio controlled drones used by photographers use frequency bands that are shared with other radio users. Some of these other services are legally permitted to use far greater transmitting powers, and in consequence drones can easily be affected by radio interference causing the user to lose control of their device. If a drone crashes to the ground, causing injury or damage, then based on my experience I would suggest that you the user could be held liable unless you can identify the source of the radio interference AND prove beyond reasonable doubt that it was done deliberately.

Chris
.

 

I'd say there very much is a safety issue. If one of them collided with a person it would cause major injuries.

 

I've been planning to do some drone filming over a railway and an event recently, but it's important to bear in mind safety procedures. In our case, we are only going to film the event before and after the public opening hours, and for the railway, no flying over or in close proximity to members of the public. I am planning to get the appropriate permission (and submit a risk assessment if needed) before undertaking any flight.
It's my opinion that if treated in this way, and used with respect for members of the public, then drones can be used usefully to get interesting footage without recklessly putting people in danger, and risking an accident that could injure someone and tar drone users with the same brush.

 

http://www.wsr.org.uk/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?h=Snapshot&p=2014/06/251

Steve

 

No more danger from a drone than a radio controlled aircraft and there's lots of them on the scene. A potential danger, yes, but not so much a danger that there's any need to get all worked up about it.

 

Maybe so, but what if there are two drones attempting to get the same shot? They are unregulated, there is no air traffic control to keep them apart and there is a great danger of one causing major injury to someone.

 

Some operators obviously do lose control of their drone cameras as one was found on the western slopes of Snaefell just this week. Haven't heard if it's been claimed yet. Ray.

 

As Spamcan says, people have been using radio controlled aircraft in public places for years and I've regularly seen them fly in groups. While I'm sure there will have been mid-air collisions and likely even injury caused to innocent members of the public, it likely doesn't happen that often, particularly as the users don't generally want to destroy their expensive toy. Whether it becomes a problem on the railways likely depends on how widespread their use becomes and how competent the pilots are. My guess is that it'll remain a relatively niche pursuit and their likely won't be many incidents arising from their use.

 

I agree. However, one can foresee a situation where they become so popular that several might be in the air at once, at a Gala or similar event, where problems could result. It's something that railway managements need to watch.
We were approached by an operator/pilot a couple of months ago. He was highly skilled and responsible, the results were excellent and are now on our website, mangapps.co.uk.

 

Looks like Chicken Licken's arrived on this thread.

 

only takes one to ruin someones life.

 

I suspect that you've never seen one of these machines in operation. On their own, in an appropriate environment and in the hands of a skilled and responsible operator they are 100% safe. However, having closely observed one in use, including the control system, etc., I can see how, in other circumstances, there could be dangers. We may not like it, but nowadays responsible managers have to consider those possibilities. The policy that I have adopted at present is one of caution; that only one drone will be permitted on site at a time, and that the railway will have overall control of it's operation. If, in the light of experience, that seems unduly draconian, then the policy will be relaxed.

 

100% safe? I think not

 

Possible - seeing he had the foresight to arrange a drinking facility at Bundenthal-Rumbach, Ian may well have had a nice cool beer in his hand by the time the large crowd around 52 4867 thought they were being attacked by a swam - which turned out to be a camera drone!

The same device (or similar) appeared at the photo-shoot at Neustadt Weinstrasse depot later in the Dampfspektakel 2014, and it did cross my mind on one of the occasions it shot from the camera line to over the actual shed at high speed that the site has overhead electrified DB lines each side of it, and if somebody managed to set such a device off so it collided with such wires, I suspect the result could be some serious delays! Not an issue for most heritage lines (although at least one has a neighbouring mainline with overhead wires at one end and that number will increase) but a potential issue for mainline steam being filmed by drones.

As you say - it is all down to the skill and sense of the operator.

Steven

 

Yes I have and on more than one occasion. As I said - Chicken Licken has arrived.

 

Possibly the same guy as "droned" the Bensheim Doppelausfahrt on the Thursday. I'm sure it was the same drone and operator at Neustadt depot. My concern is not so much one of safety but the damn noise. Trying to do sound or video with one of them things about will be a right pain.