Hi Gang,
It's been a while since I've flown RC Helis or quadcopters, been involved in High Power rocketry the last year or so....

Long story short, my wife leases a property in NJ where she operates a for hire horse boarding stable....Very picturesque 17 acre facility with some of her own horses, but mostly client's horses that she tends to every day. There are "Private Property" and "No Trespassing" signs clearly posted at all the entrances and on the fence line...
Yesterday on Thanksgiving, she is in the middle of bring the individual horses in from their fields, and she notices something buzzing around overhead.....Yup, it's a "drone" with most likely FPV and camera capability....

She stopped what she was doing, and approached the individual, who was in his car, "flying" the drone watching it through his phone or small handheld screen...When she asked him if she could help him, he proceeded to tell her that he was flying overhead to obtain video/photos of her facility, because he "has a webpage and social media accounts that he is trying to show the public the beauty of the surrounding area"...

When she asked him to stop flying over her and her customer's horses while she was bringing them in, he responded "I'm allowed to fly over any property" and he kept on flying while this conversation took place...Luckily, no accidents occurred, but anyone who knows anything about horses will tell you that almost anything can "spook" or startle horses and it can lead to them breaking loose, running through fences, etc.
When she came home and told me about the encounter, I was floored by the audacity of this "pilot" to just give her the brush and keep flying over people, horses, and over property that he had no permission to fly over, let alone take video/photos for possible financial gain...

How would one proceed in "correcting " this irresponsible Commercial or Hobby Drone pilot?

Thanks for any suggestions....

Franz in NJ

Before even starting the "flying over private property" debate he's already apparently violated 14 CFR § 107.31 and § 107.39 (assuming he was doing it for what could be considered not strictly for recreational purposes). If he was told he was spooking the horses and someone could therefore be hurt, then also § 107.23.

Ask him to stop.
If he doesn't then take pictures of him and his car license. Video of the interaction.
Call the cops, let them sort it out.

Originally Posted by vulturetec

Before even starting the "flying over private property" debate he's already apparently violated 14 CFR § 107.31 and § 107.39 (assuming he was doing it for what could be considered not strictly for recreational purposes). If he was told he was spooking the horses and someone could therefore be hurt, then also § 107.23.

Yup, I’m aware of the NJ state and FAA regs on these UAV’s, I’m convinced from what my wife observed that this person was in violation of a few rules and would like to know how to go about reporting the apparent violation....Had the pilot been more apologetic or stopped flying until she was done, it might have been a different story, but I’m just concerned about the individual clearly not giving a damn about people that may approach with legitimate concerns and get brushed off with inaccurate information from the pilot...
It’s not good for the image of the hobby/commercial profession and this is why the FAA is trying to implement more regs in the first place....

Franz in NJ

Originally Posted by pmackenzie

Ask him to stop.
If he doesn't then take pictures of him and his car license. Video of the interaction.
Call the cops, let them sort it out.

Yup, had I been there, that’s what I would have done, but my wife was in the middle of wrangling horses when this happened and had no chance to call local authorities or video the interaction....I’ve tried to contact the individual on his Social Media but have gotten no response, wondering if at this point I should contact our NJ district FAA office to alert them of this person’s unwillingness to stop when he was asked to stop flying overhead....
This is part of the reason these UAV’s get a bad rap sometimes when pilots are disrespectful and irresponsible....
Franz in NJ

post his social media here