[A]n upstanding citizen and well-regarded member of the Burlington business community unwittingly crossed over to the other side of the law on Tuesday.
Investigating a tip that reported the operation of drones near Cherry Street and South Winooski Avenue, just steps from Church Street, VTDigger discovered that Kelly Devine, executive director of the Burlington Business Association, flouted federal law by flying a drone too close to the airport.
What was the reason for such a public disturbance? Devine defended herself, claiming it was all for the benefit of a charity fundraiser.
“I’m super excited to rappel for the Flynn Theater!” she said, without a trace of remorse, when reached by phone while on vacation. “We took some footage … related to a promotional video for my ‘Over the Edge’ challenge.”
Her fundraising team, the Wobbly Knees Brigade, had been drumming up support on Facebook, and wanted to up the ante.
“We’ve been using that drone to do footage of what the rappel would look like,” she said. “We thought of adding this dramatic footage to try and show the drama of the drop and wanted to get different angles on Cherry Street.”
Her story checked out: On Sept. 5, the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts is hosting “Over the Edge for the Flynn,” a group-rappelling effort.
The organization will benefit from 100 participants who agreed to hang by a thread – actually a climbing rope – descending the nine stories from the roof of the Courtyard Marriott on Battery Street. Fund-raising individuals must each raise $1,000 as part of their challenge to participate, while company teams can also participate, and workers can “toss the boss” with a group donation.
“I just got my hands on a drone that a friend of mine had, and we’re shooting it ourselves,” said Devine, who went out with her coworker Tuesday to collect more video.
In doing so they violated FAA code (which treats drones as aircraft) by flying within 5 miles of an airport without contacting the control tower, though Devine said neither she nor the aircraft’s owner were aware the rule.
Still, the drone garnered them some early buzz – straight from a worried passerby who contacted VTDigger.
“Apparently someone has sent out drones to take pictures of homeless people and folks on the street near downtown,” wrote the anonymous tipster, who thought the aircraft might have been security-related in nature.
A call to the airport tower revealed that officials hadn’t been notified of a drone flight in the area.
The Federal Aviation Administration calls drones “Unmanned Aircraft Systems.” To fly them, pilots must be granted written exemption for operation of the tiny device through Section 333 of the code, the law says. However, it’s often unclear to drone operators — mainly hobbyists — if or when they’re violating rules when they fly.
Only one operator in the state of Vermont has an exemption, and it’s a commercial company called Airshark, which was not available for comment.
“No drone flights, regardless of height, should occur without contacting the Burlington Airport tower first,” explained Jarlath O’Neil-Dunne, director of the Spatial Analysis Laboratory at the University of Vermont, who noted that parts of Burlington, South Burlington and Winooski fall within the airport’s 5-mile “buffer zone” that bars any aircraft from takeoff or landing without the airport’s knowledge.
Airport Aviation Director Gene Richards also has said that anyone who flies unmanned aircraft without contacting the BTV control tower “may face unspecified “enforcement action” by the Federal Aviation Administration, he told the Burlington Free Press.
Aside from violating FAA rules, Devine and her pilot might have risked freaking people out, or causing accidental injury, O’Neil-Dunne said.
“I think it gets to this primal fear of something in the sky, swooping down and getting you,” he said.
Veterans for Peace, a Vermont-based organization, agreed – enough to even submit a petition to state legislators in late 2013, asking it ban drone use.
Extensive injury could occur with certain models of drones, O’Neil-Dunne added, noting that his department is using a very simple drone for still photography to develop approaches for emergency planning.
“Certain types of drones, such as the popular quadcopter models that have exposed blades, can cause severe bodily harm and should not be flown over or near people who are not aware of the risks,” he said. Cuts from the blades would be deep enough to require stitches.
Devine said she found it hard to believe that FAA rules applied to her use: “I’d have to look into it before I’m convinced,” she said. “We were just to the top story of a building.”
If she did, she said it was a mistake. “It’s all for a good cause. We’ll make sure we check with the airport going forward,” she said. “I definitely don’t want to break the rules!”
Even though drone laws tend to fluctuate and are dependent to some degree, on the final intended use of the images taken, O’Neil-Dunne advised pilots to brush up on conduct and “be aware of the rules and regulations. The best resource is Know Before You Fly, he said.
For more pilot information contact Burlington International Airport Operations: 802-316-6014.
Editor’s note: The original report said flying the drone violated Section 333 of FAA code. That was untrue. Section 333 is an exemption just for UAS, and unrelated to the rule they violated.
