Getting harassed by a drone while hunting, what do you do?

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Shadowrider

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Prior to airplanes and severed mineral rights a person owned "to the heavens above and to the depths of hell!

As far as I know this hasn't really changed, but it's been awhile since I studied it and there has always been "grey area" with it as far as the air.

In the United States, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has the sole authority to regulate all "navigable airspace", exclusively determining the rules and requirements for its use. The prevailing understanding is that a property owner can claim airspace that they are actually using (e.g., the trees and building structures on your property that occupy “your” airspace), but all other airspace is regulated by the FAA.

It's kind of like a right-of-way. The landowner "owns it" but doesn't get to regulate it. It's basically the same thing as you actually owning to the center of the street past your front yard, but can't build anything on it, block it, etc. and aren't responsible for its upkeep.

As much as I'd love to shoot the thing down a curb stomp it into pieces, I'd just report it to the FAA and Game Warden since it was on WMA property.
 

diggler1833

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The video from the drone… people have shot drones, it’s not ended well for them. Better to have the feds deal with them, as no line of site is most likely a federal rules violation.

Very true...moral of the story: swing the gun into the drone before firing, and don't just point and shoot.

After Action Lesson: Might not hurt to look into drone laws for public land where you intend on hunting. You can apply whatever response you want and think is legal afterwards l.

I know I'm still not right. However my unique situation has me hunting on my property only...and unless that pilot has a $$$ drone with over a half mile range, then they're probably on my property to begin with...in which case they have more to worry about than a drone with #2 steel shot in it.
 

Perplexed

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However my unique situation has me hunting on my property only...and unless that pilot has a $$$ drone with over a half mile range, then they're probably on my property to begin with...in which case they have more to worry about than a drone with #2 steel shot in it.

Some drones today have a maximum transmission range of 15K meters, or more than 9 miles. Of course, in such situations, loss of direct LOS most likely would come into play. Who can see a football-sized drone that far away?

Question for you folks who advocate shooting down a drone: at what point is it “okay” to do so? 10 feet AGL? 50 feet? 100 feet? 400? Or when the drone is moving around? Standing still? Who gets to make such an “okay/not okay” determination?
 

El Pablo

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Some drones today have a maximum transmission range of 15K meters, or more than 9 miles. Of course, in such situations, loss of direct LOS most likely would come into play. Who can see a football-sized drone that far away?

Question for you folks who advocate shooting down a drone: at what point is it “okay” to do so? 10 feet AGL? 50 feet? 100 feet? 400? Or when the drone is moving around? Standing still? Who gets to make such an “okay/not okay” determination?
Is your life or the life of others under direct threat? If so, shoot away.
 

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