Ahh, there’s nothing more invigorating than when a piece of #relatablecontent goes awry.
Pauline Hanson posted a video to her Facebook last night of her taking a drone for a spin off a balcony in Townsville.
“I’m flying a drone here, first time ever… as long as I keep it under 400ft I’m right,” she says in the video. “It’s the first time I’ve ever done this but I’m just having a go at it, and actually it’s not my drone, it’s not my plane, it’s James’ drone as it’s James’ plane.”
However, the video was quickly deleted after Facebook users, rather than being delighted by Pauline’s aerial drone acrobatics, pointed out that she may well be in violation of CASA regulations for recreational unmanned aircraft.
The vid’s still up on Twitter, though who knows how long that’ll last:
THE DRONE! | Pauline Hanson takes a drone for a spin before heading off to meet @PMOnAir for Paul Murray Live in #TOWNSVILLE #auspol #qldpol pic.twitter.com/EE1WrNlmq3
— Pauline Hanson (@PaulineHansonOz) July 5, 2017
“Strooth (sic) Pauline, don’t let CASA see this video! Regulations! Take the video down quickly,” warned a commenter on her Facebook.
It basically descended into a huge debate over whether it’s allowed – but the answer is actually not entirely clear. Parts of Townsville are covered by a no-fly zone, but its unknown whether Pauline’s balcony was included.
CASA has a helpful page for would-be drone pilots, and it looks like the big rule Pauline has broken is the requirement that drones not fly within 30 metres of a residential building. This was backed up by a CASA rep speaking to the Courier-Mail.
“This includes not flying within 30 metres of people or property, you can’t fly over crowds and must not fly higher than 400 feet (120 metres) in controlled airspaces,” he said.
James Ashby, Pauline’s chief of staff, also told the Courier-Mail that the whole operation was above board.
The drone the Senator was operating is classified as very small RPA and weighs approximately 600 grams. We appreciate the concerns some Facebook users may have expressed, however safety was the Senator’s first priority.
Sorry Pauline. You’re going to sky jail. No two ways about it.
Source: Twitter.
Photo: Twitter.
