For the first time in Edmonton, police have laid charges in relation to the unsafe and dangerous operation of a drone.
On Wednesday, Sept. 7, an officer noticed a drone flying in a “dangerous manner” downtown in the area of 105 Avenue and 104 Street. Police said the drone, or Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), was being flown over buildings, roads, the MacEwan LRT Station and around Rogers Place.
“Guidelines issued by Transport Canada deem this type of operation to be hazardous to persons on the ground,” Edmonton police said in a media release Wednesday.
“The UAV was operating too close to the Royal Alexandra Heliport, which STARS uses for transporting patients for medical emergencies.”
WATCH: The dos and don’ts when it comes to flying a drone
On Monday, police charged Bennett Alexander Hojka, 23, with operating a model aircraft without a permit on parkland and flying a model aircraft in a manner that is hazardous to aviation safety.
With drones being a popular item on many Christmas lists, police are using the incident as a way to warn drone operators that the onus is on them to know where they can and cannot fly the devices.
“There are regulations for its use and that users should be familiar with and follow the Transport Canada guidelines,” Const. Binoy Prabhu with the EPS said.
READ MORE: New drone rules coming next year: Transport Canada
Transport Canada has several rules and regulations when it comes to flying drones, including not to fly them closer than nine kilometres to any helipad or airport. Drones must also be flown at least 150 metres away from people, buildings and vehicles, according to Transport Canada.
Scott Currie, a drone expert at Hobby Wholesale, said he sees interested drone buyers in the store about every 20 minutes this time of year, but admits many don’t know the rules.
“There are many people that just decide they want to do it off their picnic table in their backyard instead of driving out of the city where they possibly should be,” Currie said, adding he tries to education people so they know where they can and cannot fly.
“I would say 90 per cent of the people coming in would be newbies and they don’t know the rules and regulations but they sure leave knowing.”
Here is a full list of the dos and don’ts of flying a drone, according to Transport Canada:
Do:
- Fly your drone during daylight and in good weather (not in clouds or fog)
- Keep your drone in sight, where you can see it with your own eyes – not only through an on-board camera, monitor or smartphone
- Make sure your drone is safe for flight before take-off. Ask yourself, for example, are the batteries fully charged? Is it too cold to fly?
- Know if you need to apply for a Special Flight Operations Certificate (SFOC).
- Respect the privacy of others – avoid flying over private property or taking photos or videos without permission
Don’t:
- Fly closer than nine kilometres from any aerodrome (i.e. airport, heliport, helipad or seaplane base, etc.)
- Fly higher than 90 metres above the ground
- Fly closer than 150 metres from people, animals, buildings, structures or vehicles
- Fly in populated areas or near large groups of people, including sporting events, concerts, festivals and firework shows
- Fly near moving vehicles, highways, bridges, busy streets, or anywhere you could endanger or distract drivers
- Fly within restricted and controlled airspace, including near or over military bases, prisons and forest fires
- Fly anywhere you may interfere with first responders
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