Yes, civilians and corporations may own/fly drones just by following some common sense FAA guidelines/rules.

No, we’re not invading anyone’s privacy. We are very ethical, responsible, and respectful drone operators. We only fly our drones in full compliance with privacy laws and all other federal and state laws.

Our drones cannot identify persons from a distance. If you’re inside, we definitely can’t see you. Even if you’re outside, you will be unidentifiable. Our drones will never be flown close enough to see through any windows.

Did you know that much more detailed 3D imagery is publicly available on Google Maps (enable Earth view) and Google Street View?

Please also see Can your drones spy on people? (In short: No, it can’t spy on you or anyone!)

As responsible operators, safety is our utmost priority. We not only comply with all regulations but also strive to satisfy or exceed all industry-accepted safety standards and procedures, ensuring the highest level of safety and compliance in our operations.

For example, before each flight, we thoroughly inspect our drones and all our control and safety equipment. We also perform a detailed preflight checklist to ensure nothing is accidentally overlooked or forgotten.

All our equipment is regularly tested and inspected for faults and defects. It receives all services prescribed by the FAA and the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance schedule. We only use high-quality, tested parts that meet or exceed FAA and OEM specifications.

Sorry, no. Our insurance doesn’t allow anyone but our experienced pilots to operate our drones.

No, you don’t own the airspace and can’t stop human-crewed airplanes and helicopters for the same reasons. Only the federal government can prohibit, restrict, or regulate airspace.

We usually don’t get too close unless it’s unavoidable, for safety, a search and rescue mission, or another type of emergency. This may include, but is not limited to, evasive action to avoid birds or human-crewed aircraft, to perform an emergency landing, or to comply with Law Enforcement or FAA limits/restrictions/orders.

In short: not legally.
Attempting to interfere with, damage, or destroy a drone has the same penalties as trying to interfere with, damage, or destroy a human-crewed aircraft. It comes with multiple state and federal felony charges and can also be classified as a federal criminal violation (18 USC 32) and even a terroristic act.

You’re likely to be immediately arrested. Even joking about it is a felony. If found guilty of either, you could receive a multiple-decade prison sentence and permanent loss of your right to possess guns. You could also be liable for injuries or damages.

In detail:

• The same exact laws that protect all aircraft protect drones. So, anyone shooting at a drone would be treated the same as if they shot at a real human-crewed helicopter or airplane. The shooter could be arrested and charged with dozens of severe crimes. A conviction of any one of these could result in a multiple-decade prison term and permanent loss of your right to possess guns.
• Property owners own the land, not the air. There is ZERO private airspace in the US, and for the same reasons, property owners cannot prohibit human-crewed airplanes and helicopters; they can’t prohibit drones. Only the federal government can prohibit, restrict, or regulate this airspace. A landowner has no right to shoot at a drone and would be subject to arrest, prosecution, and civil liability.
• If the shooter causes a loss of control and the drone crashes into a person (or people), the shooter could be charged with assault with a deadly weapon or even more serious crimes. If anyone should die, the shooter could be charged with manslaughter or even murder.
• Anyone causing damage to a drone would also open themselves to severe civil liabilities and penalties. Drone operators and anyone with damages can actively pursue these and all legal costs through civil courts.

As responsible operators, we only operate in completely safe conditions for us to fly. We have drones that can operate in nearly any condition except extremely excessive winds during heavy rain or snow. We now have several that can even operate in up to 50 MPH winds.

Yes, we are able to broadcast public or private live HD video downlinks, which can be live streamed over to YouTube, Facebook, and other live broadcast sites/services. This allows viewers to tune in and watch the flight live anywhere worldwide! We typically only do this when a client requests it but sometimes will also live stream some flights to our YouTube channel.

Yes, we have a live HD video downlink that allows us to perfectly frame each scene and watch the footage as it’s captured in real-time. The video can be viewed in real-time on HD monitors, tablets, mobile phones, FPV goggles, and/or live broadcasts to YouTube, Facebook, and other live broadcast sites/services.

Drones are not dogs! They can’t roll over or shake your hand, but some of our freestyle drones are capable of 3D flying. That might include flying upside down, doing loops, and other tricks.

We can only perform such stunts in open fields, away from neighborhoods and other people.

Our drones can only “shoot” videos and photographs. It is illegal to weaponize drones in Vermont and most other states.

No! We absolutely don’t use drones for surveillance, spying, or snooping. Our drones also do not have the capability to do any of that.

The fact is, as long as it has propellers (or jet engines), there’s compression and rarefaction of the air, producing motion of air molecules. This movement propagates through the air as pressure waves. These sound and pressure waves can be heard at long distances. There’s no way to overcome this except by flying very high up so that the waves have completely dissipated and don’t reach the ground or the individual being monitored.

Science-Fiction is still completely fiction.
What you might have seen fictionalized on TV/Movies is fiction, and we don’t have military drones.

At just 50’ high, people start to look like ants. Non-military drones cannot clearly zoom to photograph or video through a window unless it’s within a few feet. To identify an individual or make out any specific details, non-military drones must fly very close to the subject, where they can be easily heard and seen. Thus making them utterly impractical for covert surveillance.

100-Feet Above Ground Level

Our drones cannot identify persons from a distance. If you’re inside, we definitely can’t see you. Even if you’re outside, you will be unidentifiable. Our drones will never be flown close enough to see through any windows.

Additionally, all civilian aerial drones (including ours) are not capable of “zooming in” or enlarging photographs/video like you might have seen on TV shows or movies. Those types of dramatizations are completely FICTIONAL and not remotely like reality. Even the military is still wishing for all those types of capabilities and for the type of clarity that has been depicted on TV and in movies.

The reality is that those “sci-fi” features are just impossible because lenses capable of that type of magnification are very large, long, and heavy—too heavy for civilian drones. It is physically and optically impossible to miniaturize them and make lighter versions small enough. The lens would also need very complex image stabilization technology to overcome the significant vibration and movement intensified by the lens’s increased magnification power.

Engineers and scientists are skeptical that these limitations can ever be broken in our lifetimes. So, until some non-existent genius makes an unlikely breakthrough and figures out how to alter the laws of physics and optical science, drones will continue to be the absolute worst and most ineffective way to photograph or spy on anyone covertly.

Our drones can technically fly over several thousand feet high and 4+ miles away from their operator. However, we never exceed 400′ above ground level and don’t fly beyond the visual line of sight of the operator.

Wind and other weather conditions greatly affect flight time, but most of our drones can fly for 25-45 minutes before a battery swap is required. A couple can even fly for 90-110 minutes.

For applications requiring longer flight times, we ensure efficient operations by swiftly swapping out the rechargeable battery packs. This allows our drones to be back in the air in no time. Alternatively, our home-built wings can provide flight times in excess of several hours. Some of our drones can even fly continuously for many hours with a tether/power cable.

We also have enough battery packs to continuously keep our drones up in the air (while depleted batteries recharge in our vehicles from solar batteries or gas generators.)

It varies wildly, but it’s a very costly undertaking to fly what we fly. Once you add up the cost of one drone and everything else needed to fly, it can be as expensive as a decent-sized boat. It’s also as big of a money pit!

The drone itself is a very small piece of the puzzle and just the beginning of everything else that’s required. For example, many operators spend over $1,000 on just the batteries for each drone!

For those looking to dip their toes into the world of drone flying, there are some affordable (sub $100) toy drones that are both fun and educational. These are perfect for beginners and even seasoned pros looking to hone their skills.

We constantly upgrade our equipment to provide the latest, best, and industry-leading quality and resolution. Please see our Fleet page for more information about each of the photographic, cinematography, and data collection drones and cameras we use.

It’s a small Unmanned Aerial System (sUAS) or just a “drone,” for short. See our Fleet page for more information about each of our photographic/survey drones.

The following are some of the more popular usages for drones:

• Filming TV Shows/Movies and Internet videos
• Making art (e.g., landscape, nature, or wildlife photography and cinematography)
• Aerial photography of real estate or other property
• Journalism and news coverage
• Farming/Agriculture
• Environmental compliance, environmental studies, environmental research, counting/monitoring wildlife, etc.
• Surveying or inspecting a property, infrastructure, or agriculture
• Search and Rescue
• Law Enforcement/Firefighting/HAZMAT Response
• Possibly even food and parcel delivery in the future

It’s for everyone’s safety.

It’s for your safety. Flying a drone requires the full attention of its operators. Looking over our shoulders or asking questions can be distracting. Any distraction, no matter how small, can be potentially dangerous. So please don’t disturb us while any of our aircraft are in flight.

Disobeying or interfering with a flight crew is against Federal Law. Flight crew interference incidents can result in up to 20 years imprisonment and fines of up to $250,000!