from Hover Effect on Vimeo.
Two Marin County men were cited by federal authorities over an unmanned helicopter buzzing around Alcatraz Island, the National Park Service reported.
The operator of the remote-controlled helicopter, which is equipped with high-definition cameras, was Devin Hedrick, an aerial photographer who lives in Greenbrae. Hedrick’s service, Hover Effect LLC, offers airborne video and still photography for real estate listings, music videos and television shows.
On Tuesday, working from a boat on the bay, Hedrick was operating the electric helicopter for a client, Bruce Paquett of Sausalito, whose project involves images of Alcatraz. According to park service spokeswoman Alexandra Picavet, the helicopter, which has a rotor span of about 6 feet, was flying low around the island, frightening the birds and swooping over the tourists’ ferry dock.
The U.S. Coast Guard, carrying a National Park Service ranger, approached their boat and confiscated the video. After watching it, the park service issued citations to both Hedrick and Paquett.
“Their own footage showed us what they were doing, which was scaring the shorebirds from their nests and getting too close to the people on the dock,” Picavet said.
Hedrick was cited on suspicion of disturbing wildlife, operating aircraft within 500 feet of a boat dock, creating hazardous conditions and operating an aircraft within the Federal Aviation Administration-imposed closure of 2,000 feet above the island.
Paquett was cited on suspicion of filming without a permit.
Alcatraz is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, which is managed by the National Park Service.
Hedrick, reached by telephone, said he thought the boat was 500 feet away.
“There certainly are some things I should have been more clear about, instead of just taking the advice of the boat driver,” he said.
Paquett at first declined to comment on his project or the incident, but then called the citation “ridiculous.”
“There was no harm done to anybody or anything. If you want to continue this line of questioning, I can get an attorney,” he said, before hanging up.
Ian Gregor, a spokesman for the FAA, said department policy allows people to operate “model aircraft” for fun, but that other remote-controlled aircraft are classified as “Unmanned Aircraft Systems,” or UAS.
Under FAA policy, people and private companies can only operate UAS for “research and development purposes,” Gregor said. The operator must obtain a “experimental airworthiness certificate” from the FAA, which certifies the safety of the aircraft and specifies the location and conditions in which it can be flown.
Neither Hedrick nor Hover Effect LLC appear in the FAA’s online registry. Hedrick, contacted Thursday about his FAA status, said his attorney advised him not to comment while the citations are pending.
Although no data were available, incidents like the Alcatraz complaint appear to be rare. Gregor said the FAA was “aware of a handful of cases where people might be improperly operating” drones in California, though he had no information specific to the Bay Area.
“In general, we’re planning on issuing cease-and-desist letters to people we determine are operating UAS without authorization,” he said.
Source: Marin Independent Journal