The Hovership Zuul is currently David’s favorite quadcopter.
of these helicopters have a lot of
composite/plastic. If you’re cruising
around and a blade on something
[such as a drone] hits, it would be
catastrophic.
CM: Speaking as a full-scale pilot, what do
you think of the FAA’s drone registration?
DD: I initially thought it was a bad idea
for the FAA to get involved with a
hobby. But at the same time, there are
so many operators out there who are
not flying smart.
CM: It’s always hard to view an issue
from both sides, but you are in a unique
position to do so. In that regard, what are
your thoughts about the future integration
of sUAS and manned aircraft?
DD: Drones are the future. Right now
we have pilots in news helicopters,
utility helicopters, and fighting fires.
Slowly but surely, I foresee sUAS
aircraft taking some of these jobs. Why
not?
Do I think a drone could fly around
the city and monitor traffic? Sure I do.
Putting light poles in the ground or
spraying cornfields? Yep. Whether we
like it or not, I think it’s coming. [This
is] all my opinion, of course.
CM: If there was one thing you could tell
every drone/sUAS pilot out there, what
would it be?
DD: If there was one thing that I
could tell people, it would be to help
police the hobby. Fly responsibly
and encourage other people to fly
responsibly. Stop thinking that every
time you see something on the news
about a drone being close to an aircraft
that someone’s making it up if he or she
doesn’t have a picture. The last thing on
my mind at 940 mph is getting a picture
of a drone that I’m trying to get away
from.
I think what we are missing in this
hobby is common sense. Every day
you see a new video of someone flying
a quadcopter over a crowd of people
or a stadium or next to an airport.
We have to be smart and not fight the
system. The FAA is not the bad guy;
it’s separating the good pilots from
the not-so-smart people. If you’re not
doing anything wrong, why fight the
system?
CM: What is your favorite quadcopter at
the moment?
DD: My favorite quads right now are
my Hovership Zuul Racehounds. I have
the 265mm 5-inch quadcopter and
its 285mm 6-inch big brother. Great
company!
SOURCES:
International Radio Controlled Helicopter Association
(IRCHA)
www.ircha.org
AirCare Critical Care Transport Services (Wake Forest
Baptist Health)
www.wakehealth.edu/Referring-Physicians/AirCare.
htm
FAA
www.faa.gov
Hovership
www.hovership.com
104 Model Aviation JULY 2016
www.ModelAviation.com
