Your “Toy” Camera Drone Can Save Lives, Really!

Los Angeles, CA—The word of the day is FLIR!  I knew this was in development but now it’s actually here!  FLIR became a major public safety and search & rescue tool more than two decades ago.  Now even civilian camera drones are in the FLIR mix! 

Flir has primarily been delegated to expensive cameras carried on board conventional aircraft for military, police, fire and every public safety application.

Recently the popular drone maker DJI and Flir teamed up to offer these now affordable lifesaving cameras.  They can now operate from the popular DJI Inspire1 and Matrice 100 drone platforms.  That means anyone with these drones can save or at least protect lives. 

Flir is simply an optical device that captures imagery of heat signatures or thermal patterns.  At 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit our bodies are normally warmer than the ambient air temperature.  At night the outside air is almost always colder than the bodies of humans or warm-blooded animals.

A human walking in total darkness in a desert or wooded are stands out as a bright shadow and easily spotted from either the ground or air.  In many ways the FLIR is superior to conventional night vision devices and is essential when looking for lost people, trespassing criminals, lost pets and other such suspects.

You can also spot recently parked motor vehicles by their heat signatures too.

For firefighting efforts hotspots can easily be pinpointed directing the efforts to extinguish fires faster and more safely.  More importantly firemen can know in advance if and when they need to evacuate rooftops avoiding potential agonizing deaths or injuries.

This is truly a game and public perception changer on the value of the popular camera drones.   At a minimum people will be locating lost pets, children or wild animals roaming in their surroundings.  Until now you’d have to wait for first responders to evaluate the need, and then for them to travel to the search areas.

In our world we have earthquakes, floods, tornados and wildfires. Drones can operate safely in tighter areas where helicopters cannot enter.  Civilian FLIR equipped drones particularly in remote areas can be worth more than gold.

At the 2015 International Drone Expo I interviewed FLIR VUE specialist David Lee about the new camera. 

Drone Hysteria! Gullible Media Organizations have Been Hoodwinked Big Time by the FAA and DOT

Washington, D.C.—We have a full-blown crisis!  We are being told that government must suddenly regulate and register the well over two million drones used by hobbyists, photographers, filmmakers and other ordinary civilians.

For over two years now we’ve heard the media tell us how these little pesky devices will bring down airliners, invade privacy and destroy our way of life.  Pulling the puppet strings of the media has been the FAA and DOT. 

Chicago’s Mayor, Rahm Emanuel said it best back when he was Obama’s Chief of Staff, “Never let a good crisis go to waste!”  This drone crisis is nothing more that a manufactured one.

The FAA has showered the media with their “facts” in that they claim there are well over 700 cases of near misses with airliners and other conventional aircraft.

Missing from these statistics are a single fatality, serious injury or even a report of notable property damage.  Because drones have driven news stories like wildfire a child needing a Band-Aid on his nose from a drone propeller is automatically a national news story. 

I guess nobody in the media noticed that there is not a single incident where a multi-rotor camera drone every touched any conventional aircraft, ever.

More importantly there is not a single identified suspect, prosecution, captured drone, video or even a photograph involving these near miss reports!  Nearly everyone has a video camera in their pockets today but not a single image exists of drone misconduct? 

Now there is a sudden rush to regulate and register every little drone in America!  We are being told that this is being done in the name of public safety.  Is it about safety or just a case of government selling us on more government?  As you read this you know the answer, we’ve been had!

The reason for the sudden rush is simple.   As each year drags on and there are no significant accidents to report or legitimate cases of privacy invasions discovered the need for regulation is non-existent.  The taxpayers can’t then be fleeced over this manufactured impending doom.

Imagine the number of FAA and DOT agents that will be needed to register and inspect every drone in America?  Politicians will be putting their relatives, friends and supporters in well paying government drone chasing jobs! 

Then they will all take credit for the fact that there are no deaths, injuries or property damage as a result of their comprehensive drone enforcement activities!  That’s how our government works!

In the meantime the morons in suits running our shrinking news organizations that helped to create this Drone Hysteria must continue spending millions leasing helicopters and crews to get images.   Using drones would only cost a tiny percentage of what they pay now.

Conventional pilots run the FAA.  They are all aware that drones will be eliminating a significant percentage of their jobs.  They have an obvious conflict of interest here.  It’s in their interest to slow the drone technology down as much as they can.

FAA regulations were all written in blood.  They are based on actual deadly aircraft accidents.  When it came to our little drones the FAA departed from reactive regulation to one of prior restraint.  That’s un-American!  So is the FAA stranglehold on the commercial use of a drone. 

Will we wake up in time to keep the FAA in check?  I doubt it.  

Drone Is No Longer an Ugly Word!

Kathmandu, Nepal—Drone video of the tragic earthquake that struck the very top of the world is beyond epic.  

As soon as the quake hit television networks and camera drone operators were boarding all available means of transportation.  The drone pilots understood full well the absolute importance of rushing to the scene. 

They know that drone images and video helps rescuers and engineers determine the safest ways to extract victims.   At the same time shows the rest of the world just how this desperate the situation is being handled.

Drone pilots and first responders everywhere are beginning to understand that in natural disasters, search and rescue along with other emergencies analyzing the material is a genuine lifesaver. 

It’s much easier for ground crews to locate survivors, evaluate hazards and determine the need for specialized equipment with the help of the new small drone technology.

Helicopters are too large and their prop wash can actually bring more danger to these delicate extractions.  Once victims are clear then helicopters can drop stretchers and cables to swiftly extract victims to medical care.

CNN broadcast the heartbreaking video below to their viewers of devastation of this ancient and mystical city.  The incredible newsgathering capability of the drones is just beginning to get the attention of the nations news directors and editors.

Again I must herald that with nearly two million multi-rotor drones on the hands of the public, there has never been a fatality or serious injury.  Property damage is limited to drones getting caught in trees or insignificant collisions with the ground.  The 7000 helicopters in service worldwide can never boast of that kind of a safety record.

Aside from capturing stunning images drones are unquestionable lifesavers.

The Civilian Drone Industry and the Serious Impact of Government Tyrannical Overregulation

Los Angeles, CA—As Crimefile News prepares to cover the first ever Drone Expo here on Saturday, we are watching as more corporate and business refugees are fleeing this once great nation.  Americans are also renouncing their citizenship now, more than ever before.

Currently drone hobbyists have no licensing or training requirements to fly their drones.  The only FAA restrictions currently are in the form of somewhat vague “guidelines”.  They suggest maximum altitudes of 400 feet, staying three miles or more from airports and keeping visual contact with the drone.

Frankly the hobbyists have already proven that civilian drones really pose no threat to Americans, their safety or privacy. 

The only hard and fast enforceable civilian drone regulation is that they can’t be used to earn or generate money.  Of course the government can’t realize any income tax revenue from drone operators either. 

Civilian multi-rotor drones currently number well beyond one million.  So far none of them have been ever been involved in a death or reported serious injury. 

Frankly the drones are incredibly safer than conventional aircraft, don’t emit poisons into our air and should they crash damages are minimal and confined to the drones themselves.

Yes, there are the “reports” by conventional aircraft pilots of “near collisions” and dangerous behavior.  However suspiciously absent are any collisions, photographs, or actual identifications of any of these offending drone operators! I call them fantasy sightings.   

The over-abundant reports of cowboy drone operators ruining it for all are just more fabrications.  The fact is drone operators zealously protect their investments if for no other reason so they can continue to enjoy flying them.

I won’t personally speak for anything more than the relatively small multi-rotor craft carrying camera’s such as the GoPro or relatively light weight DSLR cameras similar to the Canon 5D or the Panasonic GH4. 

No matter how you feel about your own political preferences this issue is falling hard along political Party lines.  Republicans are responding as pro-business and commerce. 

Democrats on the other hand want to regulate, tax and punish any and all commercial productivity especially anything drone related.  That’s of course, if the political Left can’t simply ban them altogether.  United States Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA) is leading the way for a total civilian drone ban as I write this. 

Democrats like their Communist cousins have a long history of massive overregulation, extortionate taxation and restricting personal liberty despite our Bill of Rights.  

I will again redundantly argue that nearly all safety concerns are bogus since the multi-rotor drone record is stellar.

Additionally, existing privacy laws don’t insulate any drone operators from arrest or punishment should they engage in stalking or filming anywhere people have established rights to privacy.

The FAA’s foot-dragging and drone related kingdom building has had expected results.   American corporations, filmmakers and drone enthusiasts are rapidly voting with their feet to exit the USA.   

Helicopter operators currently have nearly unrestricted access to our populated cities for filming or newsgathering.  However not a year goes by with out deadly crashes costing millions in destruction.  Multi-rotor drones are significantly safer, quieter and greener

Drones are a marvelous tool for video newsgathering, filmmaking and other creative endeavors.  The First Amendment of our Bill of Rights protects those things!  Restricting these activities without a clear thereat to public safety is un-American and unlawful.  We fought wars to protect this important freedom!

The drone industry shows great promise in areas of farming and cattle ranching protecting our necessary food supply.  Livestock and irrigation need constant monitoring and drones are perfect for this role.

The necessary inspection of ecological properties like fresh water supplies, electrical and fuel lines can be accomplished much cheaper and certainly safer using drones.

With the drone industry exit, America stands to lose important intellectual property, technological and other discoveries that are vitally essential to our national defense.  

Drones are the future for the construction and insurance industry.  They also have a solid place in disaster operations to evaluate needs and delivery of food, water and medical supplies when our roads become impassable.

The Obama Administration and their FAA must step aside and allow the research, development and commercial use of drones. 

Should problems be discovered down the road, government can certainly address them.  America has up till now avoided governing by prior restraint.

The American people simply cannot afford to allow a handful of politicians and their appointed bureaucrats to continue their tyrannical governing direction over this vital technology.  

Why All The Anti-Drone Propaganda? Some Real Answers…

Los Angeles, CA—Report after report has been broadcast and published by the mainstream media alleging dangerous misconduct committed by people piloting little camera drones.

“Experts” quoted in media reports are constantly citing serious danger and privacy concerns.  They all talk about the large number of the sighting reports as a reason to regulate, restrict or otherwise outlaw this new technology.

There is just something really fishy about this propaganda campaign.  There is not one reported collision between a single little drone and any aircraft. 

Despite the reality that absolutley everyone has a decent cellphone camera in their pocket there is not a single image of a drone even near an aircraft.  All we have are unsubstantiated claims from various pilots flying conventional aircraft.  

More importantly there is not a single death or serious injury involving a civilian multi-rotor camera drone despite the fact that more than a million of them are in the hands of ordinary civilians.  Many of these owners are young teenagers.

As for privacy concerns existing laws allow for the arrest of stalkers, peepers and alike.  The use of a drone in no way insulates someone criminally invading privacy.  There is not a single case involving these drones resulting in sufficient evidence to bring about and indictment or conviction.

The fact is each and every claim of drone misconduct has been debunked.  However new, non-stop phony reports instantly follow the ones that fail.

The late Nazi Propaganda Minister, Josef Goebbels said it best; “If you tell a lie often enough it becomes the truth.”

The only people cited in any drone incidents were those found flying their drones in areas like national parks that have suddenly banned them. It’s safe to assume that the violator’s were ignorant and unaware of these brand new prohibitions.

The major media honchos have their own issues and conflicts in this dogfight.  TV and Newspapers are losing ground to Internet bloggers like me. 

I did not have to invest in expensive presses or buy ink by the barrel.  For less than $10K I’ve acquired all the TV production equipment necessary to produce quality video news stories and full documentaries.  

Now, I even have two camera drones to get the aerial still shots and video I could only dreamed of capturing two years ago.  The big media giants no longer have an edge on me!  Wow!  What raw power! 

In the next decade the entire news and entertainment landscape will be Internet based.  We will see some the major news providers vanish altogether.  It’s all changing by the second! 

The only apparent uncertainty is how revenue the will be generated by content providers.  One thing for sure the new power of the little camera drones is making a lot of people nervous.  

Drone technology is a very serious threat to professional pilots.  Not to their safety, but their livelihood. We are close to aircraft that will fly free of pilot error crashes and of course pilots!

Very recent emerging drone technology has made great strides in collision avoidance software.   GPS, computer software and imaging hardware will eliminate the need for a large percentage of pilots.  Right now there is no love lost between conventional pilots and the burgeoning drone technology. 

It was just after the Wright brothers created air travel that the military discovered the value of being able to observe enemy movement from high above.  Aerial reconnaissance soon gave way to aerial combat and later bombing missions.

There are those in government that fear the population and never want to see any leading technology in civilian hands.  It’s about people control.  Our First Amendment already protects newsgathering drone cameras.  Is the Second Amendment arms bearing right potentially involved here too?

I recent years during civil disturbances the FAA declared cities or entire regions, No Fly Zones.  This was only about keeping newsgathering helicopters grounded.  It’s more than obvious that this is to give government absolute power to control and dictate what news is reported.   

The whole drone propaganda campaign is not based on public safety or flying Peeping Toms.  It’s obviously all about controlling Americans and who can report news. 

Interesting Statistics Regarding the Little Camera Drones and Safety

Los Angeles, CA –Nearly everywhere there are some frightened members of Congress, various state legislatures and city councils that are considering ways to ban or severely regulate the little multi-rotor camera drones. 

Must we always adopt the Chicken Little fear that the sky is falling?

The FAA would like to expand their budget and manpower by at least tenfold or more to regulate every 12 year-old boy with a camera drone in America.  Can the FAA be trusted to not create or engage hysteria when they have so much to gain?  We all know the answer to that!

Pilots everywhere, especially those flying helicopters see the very clear handwriting on the wall.  Inexpensive and substantially safer drones will soon replace half of them. Careers are at stake here.  Should we be surprised those pilots are making the most noise condemning camera drone?  

Fighting camera and delivery drones through propaganda scare tactics is already in high gear.  We must educate politicians, business leaders, media and the public on the real facts. 

We now know that worldwide there are over a million little drones in the hands of the public.  That’s double the amount of all conventional aircraft. 

We know all too well that many millions of dollars and hundreds of lives are lost every year from conventional aircraft mishaps.

To date there has not been a single fatality or serious injury related to multi-rotor camera drones. 

I’d like to address Internet chatter from the camera drone user groups.  There are hundreds of passages exclaim that newbies, cowboys and lawless people are reeking havoc in the skies.  My favorite quote is, “They’re ruining it for everyone!” It that were the truth there would be collisions and at least some minimal evidence of this kind of conduct. 

What exists are tales including one claim by a NYPD helicopter pilot that he clocked the little drones at the speed of sound!  Considering they have a top speed of 35 MPH that's somewhat pitiful.

These camera drones all have the ultimate Black Box, that's the camera's memory chip that contains the video of the flight.  I submit that the drone's own video is more reliable than the fables and outright lies that have been told by some public officials.  

It’s a natural human condition to conjure up scenarios in our minds of bad behavior and tragic consequences.  What we must always remember here is even the cheaper camera drones are not really cheap. 

These drones are carefully guarded and cared for by their owners that don’t want to lose them to mishaps or impoundment by police.  

Drone operators all fly with friends and they are always advising each other on avoiding mistakes, piloting tips and proper etiquettes. They are in effect self-policing and regulating.    

The FAA, except for commercial use, does not now regulate the little drones.  The FAA had banned them from commercial use however that prohibition was struck down by a federal judge and is currently under appeal. 

The FAA is charged with safety and the drones have proven they do not compromise safety.  To date there has never been a known collision between a camera-drone and any conventional aircraft.

These days we hear sensational propaganda stories of near misses with planes and helicopters on a regular basis.   Add to that bogus claims that these drones somehow invade privacy have many Americans frightened, concerned and upset.

Satellites, surveillance, and cameras carried by helicopters have already stolen any privacy invasion thunder of the little drones.  Don’t forget the millions of cell-phone cameras that are in everyone’s pockets.  Cameras are here and the courts have consistently held that the First Amendment protects them.

If you don’t want to be photographed, put on your Foster Grants (sunglasses for those too young to remember that brand) and stay indoors.

If you own or lease property you can’t stop the prying eyes of aerial cameras.  Barbara Streisand found that out the hard way a few years back when a helicopter carrying a photographer snapped some pictures of her and her Malibu fortress and posted them on the Internet.  She immediately sued in court.  Not only did the singer loose but she had to pay more than a quarter million dollars to the hapless photographer.

Laws violating any portion of the Bill of Rights never stand a chance when challenged in court.  Shooting video from a camera drone over private or public property is absolutely constitutionally protected activity.   

Local bans are incredibly problematic in that tourists with drones will be ignorant of laws and even geography where its difficult to determine what jurisdiction where they are located.

Do we really want to jail and mark these people with lifelong criminal records for snapping a few pictures of our prettier parks, beaches, cities and villages?

The news media and filmmakers have already been using these things for image gathering over the more dangerous and excessively expensive helicopters.  They certainly have First Amendment rights needing protection.  

Insurance adjusters, real estate marketing and our farmers desperately need this technology for obvious reasons.  Arn't our grocery, insurance and housing cost high enough? 

If they are compelled to make rules here perhaps two current FAA guidelines are worthy of adoption.  Flying below 400 feet and avoiding airspace within five miles of an airport without control tower approval seems workable. 

Below you will find the estimated number of aircraft and helicopters worldwide:

  312,000     Active General Aviation Aircraft

  17,770     Passenger Aircraft

  89,129     Military Aircraft

  26,500     Civil Helicopters

  29,700     Military Helicopters.

According to the General Aviation Manufacturers Association there are approximately 312,000 active general aviation aircraft worldwide.

General aviation (GA) is defined as all aviation other than scheduled commercial airlines and military aviation.

Over 312,000 general aviation aircraft including helicopters,

single-engine piston-powered airplanes, multi-engine turboprops, and intercontinental business jets are flying throughout the world.

Information provided by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association:

http://www.gama.aero/aboutGAMA/industryFacts.phpThe General Aviation