Police Chief vows to deploy an unmanned aerial vehicle despite contentions

"AJ" wrote in message
oups.com...
Since when does a local police chief outrank the authority of the
federal government? Yet another headline-grabbing fool.

Perhaps he has decided to stand up against a stupid ruling. If it is kept
in sight, it is a RC airplane, and not able to be prevented from flying.
--
Jim in NC

On Mon, 12 Feb 2007 13:48:43 -0800, Morgans wrote
(in article ):


"AJ" wrote in message
oups.com...
Since when does a local police chief outrank the authority of the
federal government? Yet another headline-grabbing fool.

Perhaps he has decided to stand up against a stupid ruling. If it is kept
in sight, it is a RC airplane, and not able to be prevented from flying.


Big "IF," though. The police chief sounds just as arrogant as the FAA.

There are plenty of aircraft that routinely fly below 400 feet. We have no
guarantee from this police chief that he intends to abide by FAA rules; quite
the contrary. For all we know he might fly it miles away from where the
operator can see it, out in open country among the cropdusters and
microlites. Or over the freeway among the traffic copters. He could decide to
fly it over a runway. He might decide to fly it at 10,000 feet. I don't
think it is too much to ask for him to do the paperwork and assure the FAA
and everybody else that he is going to abide by some basic rules. If he
doesn't, then the model aircraft guys are going to be the losers. If the FAA
sees the RCA rules as a loophole for somebody like this police chief, they
are going to put some very restrictive rules on RCA, whether the AMA lobby
likes it or not. In fact, AMA should be in the forefront in opposing the
deployment of this device for that very reason. Otherwise, they could lose
their right to fly.

--
Waddling Eagle
World Famous Flight Instructor