Local model airplane club happy with new federal drone rules

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Model airplane clubs around Vancouver are applauding the Federal Government’s new drone laws, but they say the rules don’t go far enough.

Gas Model Club president Gerry Boyd says their club uses planes tethered to the ground and they didn’t experience problems until drone flyers started using their fields without their permission.

Under the new rules, recreational drone pilots are restricted in how high they can fly around buildings, animals or people, and how far they have to be from airports.

They must include their name, address and phone number on their drones, but Boyd doesn’t think that goes far enough.

“The person buying it should be registered, the drone should be registered, and the serial number recorded in the event of a problem you know where to go,” he says.

Boyd says government should require drone sellers to pass along certain information to buyers.

“Number one, a copy of the rules. Number two, we want your name and address and we will register the drone.”

Transport Canada says there were 148 reported incidents involving drones in 2016 and the number has been steadily rising over the last three years.

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