Welcome DJI Spark Pilot!
Jump in and join our free Spark community today!
Sign up

Florida Man Charged With Illegal Super Bowl Drone Flight

Spark 317

Well known member with a Spark and a Mavic Air 2.
Premium Pilot
Join
Jul 10, 2017
Messages
5,040
Loc
Indiana, USA
This article seems to suggest that the operator is Part 107 certificated and got an authorization to fly in the restricted area subject to the TFR. I am either reading this wrong or it is very poorly written, or both.
 
"According to the FBI, Teran has a certificate to fly the drone but told agents he had to alter it to allow a flight in the FAA's restricted area".

Okay, so having a Part 107 certificate is one thing, but it's the "...told agents he had to alter it to allow a flight in the FAA's restricted area". Hmmm, he had to alter it. Is that like scratching out your birthday on your driver license and changing it to allow access to clubs that serve alcohol? The TFRs were published over a week ago and I don't know if they would've geofenced the affected area, but users alone normally cannot alter authorization documents. He'll sort it out.
 
Per the article:

"According to the FBI, Teran has a certificate to fly the drone but told agents he had to alter it to allow a flight in the FAA's restricted area. He apparently used the drone to take video of Super Bowl events in Miami Beach."

Yep, clear as mud. How does one "alter" a "certificate to fly the drone?" Does that mean he had a waiver to fly in the TFR? On the other hand, if he did have a waiver, why is he being charged? Is it significant that he's being charged by the FBI and not the FAA?

The only thing clear about the story, is that it doesn't tell the whole story.
 
May be that the FBI has overarching cognizance for security. The FAA does not have the enforcement resources that FBI and DHS have, though if it turns out there was a violation, the FAA will play its part.
 
That’s what I meant about the possible sloppiness of the reporting. I would doubt he confessed to the FBI that he altered a federal document. That seems like an uninformed and in artful way of the reporter writing that he obtain some form of authorization. I would think if it were a special event TFR, we’re probably talking about a waiver and not simple ATC authorization. Most of the folks reporting these stories don’t have a real grasp for the nuances and terms of art in the UAS world. That he may have gone through the steps and it still being charge does not surprise me. I’m not certain that the charging agencies really have their arms around this area of regulation yet. Consider how many uninformed police officers, park rangers, etc. we have all come across.
 
  • Like
Reactions: I B Spectre
I kinda think, if he had legit FAA approval this story would not be here! Also, if he were 107, he’d have slightly more at risk for such a stunt.
 

Members online

No members online now.

Forum statistics

Threads
14,593
Messages
118,799
Members
17,987
Latest member
csdisme