In general, you are free to fly your drone around your neighborhood. Although it is the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that is the owner of the air that is on top of your house. The ownership of your house doesn’t go beyond your land, that is, the sky.
If you want to fly your drone, you must be completely sure that your flight will be successfully done. You are also mandated to have very close contact with your drone, visually. You are not permitted to fly your drone for more than four hundred feet. Also, flying your drone within flight restriction areas of airports is illegal. You can check out the map of the restricted areas on Dronesafe’s website, and their sponsor is the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
Plus, you must register your drone if it weighs two hundred and fifty grams or more. You must also register any of your drones apart from toys that have cameras with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) before you attempt flying them. Also, the pilots of the drones that weigh two hundred and fifty grams or more are required to register with the Civil Aviation Authority if they can pass a primary flying test.
For drones that weigh two hundred and fifty grams or more, they must be flown fifty meters horizontally far from groups of people but for drones that weigh less than two hundred and fifty grams, they should not be flown above groups of people.
Also, drones that are more than two hundred and fifty grams are mandated to not fly within one hundred and fifty meters of commercial, recreational, industrial, or residential areas.
People that use drones for commercial purposes are required to get permission from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). Drones that are used for commercial purposes should not fly around built-up areas or closer to where people are staying. The operators of commercial drones are expected to have third-party liability insurance, they also need to get qualifications like the A2 Certificate of Competency, which permits the pilot of a drone to fly a drone following the “A2 open category” rules, or certification from the CAA to cover these aspects of their flight.
General laws on flying a drone
Below are the general laws on flying a drone according to the current rules in the Unmanned Aircraft Regulation and the amended Air Navigation Order.
- Flying your drone very low above someone’s land without getting permission from them will make you liable for trespass, whether you go to the land personally or not (it is a civil and not a criminal issue).
- Also, if you don’t fly your drone carefully and you end up injuring someone or spoiling their property, you would be liable to pay the person for the injury you caused him and also compensate him for his property that you damaged.
- You would be liable for criminal damage if you use your drone to damage someone’s property on purpose.
- Also, hitting someone with mistakenly or on purpose with your drone will make you liable for battery, and that act has criminal and civil sanctions attached to it.
Also, the CAA made it clear that you should regularly check for any local bylaws that hinder the use of drones, like landing and taking off.
The two major kinds of drone use are hobby and commercial. Anyone can own a hobby drone but you need to have certain certifications and follow certain rules if you want to fly a commercial drone.
If you own a hobby drone, you cannot fly more than four hundred feet in the air. But if you own a commercial drone, you can. And commercial drone owners can fly around some off-limits buildings that hobby drones cannot, with the aid of a federal waiver.
Also, commercial drones can fly at night with the aid of a waiver. There are more than 3,500 commercial drone waivers in the United States of America.
If you have a hobby drone, you cannot fly it at night if it has lights to indicate its direction and to control how high it can go.
Can a drone fly over your house?
Yes. The same way you can fly your drone over your house is the same way someone else can fly a drone over your house because it is The Federal Aviation Administration that manages the air beyond your house and the sky above your house is not part of your property.
Just the same way you can’t restrict people from passing the streets of your house that you don’t own is the same way you can’t restrict someone’s drone that is flying over your house.
Is a drone permitted to record you in your backyard?
Yes, it does. You should not expect to have privacy if you are in the open even down to your backyard. Although you could go through legal procedures to hinder a drone from recording you in your backyard and if anyone tries it, you could sue for damages.
Can you shoot a drone out of the sky?
No, you are not allowed to shoot a drone out of the sky because drones are also referred to as aircraft according to the National Transportation Safety Board. Also, these drones are protected, and shooting them means going against federal law.
Is there any danger in shooting down a drone?
Yes, there is. It is possible that you would face jail time or even be made to pay a certain amount of fine.
If the drone you shoot lands in your house, your house may burn because drones have Lipo batteries in them that are very prone to get caught by fire.
Plus, the owner of the drone you shot has the right to sue you for damaging his property.
Are you allowed to shine a laser pointer or a light on a drone?
No, you are not allowed. You are supposed to treat drones the same way you treat an airplane. And shining a laser pointer at a drone is illegal.
Things you can do as regards drones
When you see a drone, try to find out who the owner of the drone is and attempt conversing with them. You can easily find who the owner of a drone is because they fly at a short distance and their battery power does not last for long. If the owner of the drone is unreasonable, you can involve the law enforcement agency around you in the case. If you think a drone is spying on you, you can talk to the cops.
There are legal measures you can take to prevent a drone from lingering over your house.
Conclusion
A drone can fly over your house because you are not the owner of the air above your property but if you feel someone is spying on you with his drone, you can report the case to the cops.
You must respect the laws that guide drones in your area so you won’t get into trouble.