Thursday 3 September 2015

Simon on: Stop droning on about drones

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has finally created a drone code for those who seem hell-bent on implementing these unmanned aircraft here, there and everywhere – and about time too.

I have nothing against this technology. I myself am an avid hobbyist when it comes to drones and I’m the first to concede that they have amazing potential in all sorts of areas but conferences and other indoor events isn’t one of them.

It simply seems another case of pointless technology use – why risk endangering others, breaking several laws (and incurring fines or prosecution) and wasting valuable conference planning time filing flight plans, checking pilot licences and insurances when we already have video?

Video today holds all kinds of possibilities and the quality along with software advances means footage can be captured just as easily, and a lot more safely, using this method.

I think what gripes me most about the explosion of drone popularity and the shunning of video is that the industry hadn’t even mastered video correctly yet, but has moved onto something far more complex and dangerous without even considering the multitude of consequences.


Anyone can buy an off the shelf drone but with it comes a mass of responsibility – it cannot just be used at a conference for the sake of it, and really, is there anything that is going to come out of the conference that requires such an expensive and dangerous piece of tech to be used? 

Originally published in Conference News

No comments:

Post a Comment