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Comment by mynameisvlad | Hacker News Reader

Why is gatekeeping FPV drones so important to you? Opening it up to new potential users some of which will want to eventually invest in better setups seems very much like a good thing.

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I don't consider it gatekeeping. I consider it responsibility. Low barrier to entry is not always such a good thing. The idiots that would not get into it because of some sort of required training but would get into it without hesitation without training are typically ones that cause the problems for everyone else. There are lots of things in life/society that requires some sort of responsibility. I feel that something you can fly in a manner that you can only see in one direction without fully knowing what else is around you is one of those things. Caveat being designated areas setup and maintained as a UAV operating area.

Rotor Riot's infamous bridge dive [1]

Mr Steele's failsafe when diving a building [2], Reddit discussion [3]

Nurk's train video (for which he was fined by the FAA) [4]

But surely, those trained professionals that learned how to solder wires to the ESCs can't be dicks.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJgRuMXBHHI

[2] https://gfycat.com/freshthisinsect-multicopter

[3] https://old.reddit.com/r/Multicopter/comments/5hajmh/lets_al...

[4] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQDcDZ6rmGE

Yup. I've been flying long enough to know that even though my radio and video link can easily take me several kilometers out, it can fail at any moment and I have to treat it as such.

RTF packages have always existed, but DJI making this widespread will allow every random person to buy one from their local store and have the ability to fly acro, which is pretty horrifying.

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