Drone footage from 04/30/2019

[rdale]

Agreed. The drone is probably closer than that to the tornado. But since no planes are flying in the funnel cloud, so there is no safety concern at all, I can’t see why the FAA would ever pursue any drone tornado footage.

 

[Douglas Kiesling]

Agreed. The drone is probably closer than that to the tornado. But since no planes are flying in the funnel cloud, so there is no safety concern at all, I can’t see why the FAA would ever pursue any drone tornado footage.

As I said before, a major FAA office is based in Oklahoma City. It is a government bureaucracy that is huge and should an FAA Examiner or Safety Inspector want to pursue this because he or she maybe does not like storm chasers, not a fan of drones, maybe a bunch of Chopper Pilots called and complained because they are worried about their jobs, or some other reason. They could make an example out of one chaser that works in the media for everyone else and once you bust a reg and get on the radar for a Examiner or Safety Inspector, they can make your life hell.

If you want an example, look at what someone with the FAA did to Bob Hoover, AKA, Chuck Yeagers wing man chase pilot during the Mach 1 flight and one of the best pilots to ever fly. Bob Hoover | Pilot Medical Solutions - LeftSeat.com

 

[K. Gentry]

Drone Dummy Here: Are there rules against using drones in situations where lightning is present?

 

[Douglas Kiesling]

Drone Dummy Here: Are there rules against using drones in situations where lightning is present?

As a pilot, we're just told to stay away from thunderstorms in general with the standard distances because of clouds, turbulence, hail and wind gust and such. With a drone for a drone pilot, if you are flying under 400 feet AGL limit and maintaining a distance 500 feet below the ceiling and 2000 feet from the clouds, you should be fine from my understandingof the regulations.

 

[mschulz]

Hello all! I am a new member here on Stormtrack. I have been chasing storms for 7 years now mainly in the Mid South Region, so I don’t have near the experience many of you have. Drones have become much more affordable over the years and are trending to be more common among chasers. I recently jumped on the bandwagon and got a drone. I was able to use the drone for chasing purposes for the first time this week and have to say using a drone while chasing/spotting is such a safety net as well as a study tool for post-event analysis. The dense tree cover of the south really hinders you from being able to see far off at an oncoming storm, using a drone to go above the tree line to investigate what is actually headed your way is essential to me. They also provide such a unique perspective on storms and that unique perspective can be studied later on to improve thunderstorm modeling . People in general are very quick to be condescending and almost rude when it comes to feedback on drone storm footage I’ve noticed, and I know there are many rules that the FAA has set up that drone pilots have to follow, but the general public and even some weather enthusiasts seem to see chasers/drone pilots as arrogant or something like that. We do not need to let the technicalities get in the way of chasing with drones, the possibilities are endless when it comes to drone photography and videography and storms. A few chasers are already using drones and I hope this trend continues, but not to where it causes air space issues with other chasers and their drones on the same storm. Meteorological research could advance from drone footage. Thank you all for allowing more to be part of the amazing group!

 

[mschulz]

Hello all! I am a new member here on Stormtrack. I have been chasing storms for 7 years now mainly in the Mid South Region, so I don’t have near the experience many of you have. Drones have become much more affordable over the years and are trending to be more common among chasers. I recently jumped on the bandwagon and got a drone. I was able to use the drone for chasing purposes for the first time this week and have to say using a drone while chasing/spotting is such a safety net as well as a study tool for post-event analysis. The dense tree cover of the south really hinders you from being able to see far off at an oncoming storm, using a drone to go above the tree line to investigate what is actually headed your way is essential to me. They also provide such a unique perspective on storms and that unique perspective can be studied later on to improve thunderstorm modeling . People in general are very quick to be condescending and almost rude when it comes to feedback on drone storm footage I’ve noticed, and I know there are many rules that the FAA has set up that drone pilots have to follow, but the general public and even some weather enthusiasts seem to see chasers/drone pilots as arrogant or something like that. We do not need to let the technicalities get in the way of chasing with drones, the possibilities are endless when it comes to drone photography and videography and storms. A few chasers are already using drones and I hope this trend continues, but not to where it causes air space issues with other chasers and their drones on the same storm. Meteorological research could advance from drone footage. Thank you all for allowing more to be part of the amazing group!

I captured this screenshot off of a Facebook post from Tom Skilling out of Chicago, this shows the traditional “tornado alley” shifting east into the Midwest and south US. Tornado frequencies are increasing in these areas and these areas are for the most part littered by trees. Drones could revolutionize chasing and research in the future as a way to get above the trees and obstructions in this new “tornado alley”