[Goldwingnut]

Originally Posted by photo1902

How're you able to fly over people/traffic. ie, the Turnpike? Is this legal?

I don't fly over people or vehicles, the perspective you see in the video is anywhere from 100 to 400 feet ahead of the drone depending on altitude and camera angle (a simple geometry problem to solve). In this video all the bridge shots were taken from the south side of the Turnpike.

When and if I do cross the Turnpike it is a very controlled and carefully planned and executed maneuver. I'm physically close enough to the road to watch the traffic and time the crossing so no traffic is beneath the aircraft, I also use the live video feed from the aircraft to watch for the traffic. I normally do it in what is called "sport mode" where the drone can quickly accelerate to 45+MPH to make the crossing quicker. What you don't see is the many aborted crossings and the retakes I do to make a smooth flight. I also do any flights like that on a Sunday when traffic is at its lightest - both people and vehicles.

Yesterday was an exception for flying and I had to be especially watchful because of people and traffic. I was going to fly over the new area of De Luna but there were too many people looking at houses and workers working to do it safely. The shots of Bradford were also carefully shot to make sure I stayed on the south side of Morse and not get over the workers. It's easy to check this because the camera has the ability to look straight down (-90 deg) and you can see your exact location.

So in direct answer to your question, no it is not legal to fly over unprotected people not involved or cars in motion, 14CFR107 prohibits this activity without a waiver. As I've tried to explain, I did not fly over people or vehicles.