DAY ONE


A little about us...

TCSO UAV PILOT REQUIREMENTS

  • PEACE OFFICER - Texas Peace Officer with the commissioned carried by the Travis County Sheriff.

  • PART 107 - Employee must obtain Part 107 on their own time/money.

  • APPROVED UAV COURSE - Must attend an approved UAV training course. TCSO does not endorse any specific training but can speak about different ones we have attended. PTU will review curriculum and decide if it meets the requirements.

  • TCSO GROUND SCHOOL - Law and regulation.

  • TCSO R.P.I.C. SCHOOL - RPIC School consists of radio operation, Drone Sense, report writing, uploading evidence, PIX4D, scenarios, SOPs, etc.

  • NIST TEST- Must be administered by a certified NIST tester

  • NIGHT SCHOOL -School consists of proper procedures during night operations.

  • TCOLE COURSE 8158* -Body cam class after February 2021

  • INTERVIEW/SELECTION PROCESS- Oral board or administrative review

  • UAV LIST - After approval, Major signs off on list and it is reviewed yearly.

  • CONTINUED TRAINING – Pilot must fly for two hours a month, must attend continued training including yearly In-service, and perform monthly maintenance. Pilots can be removed by the PTU at any time for not adhering to this.

TACTICAL UAV PILOT

  • SWAT School - Must attend a SWAT school approved by TCSO SWAT team.

  • Tactical Flight Officer School - Week long course with certification of completion

  • NIST Instructor - Accredited by National Institute of Standards and Technology.

  • TCOLE Instructor - "Basic" is accepted, but "Advanced" is preferred.

UAV Notification

Streaming

Law Enforcement Response to Drones

Know Your Authority- Unauthorized Drone Operations.mp4

Video

D.R.O.N.E.

Law Enforcement may be called to respond to various calls for service involving drones. The FAA outlines effective steps the responding officer can take in order to properly document the incident for follow-up by either Law Enforcement or the FAA. The FAA suggests using the acronym D.R.O.N.E. when encountering a possible violation in the field.

.55 to 55

All sUAS >.55lbs and <55lbs must have the registration number on the outside and the owner must have the registration card with them. Different UAVs offer various capabilities. Some of those include various zoom capabilities or FLIR/Thermal.

D.R.O.N.E.

Detect

Detect all available elements of the situation; attempt to locate and identify individuals operating the drone. (Look at windows/balconies/roof tops).

Report

Report incident to the FAA Regional Operations Center (ROC). Follow-up assistance can be obtained through FAA Law Enforcement Assistance Program (LEAP) special agents.

Observe

Observe the UAS and maintain visibility of the device; look for damage or injured individuals. Note: Battery life is typically 20 to 30 minutes.

Notice

Notice features: Identify the type of device (fixed-wing/multi-rotor), its size, shape, color, payload (i.e., video equipment), and activity of device.

Execute

Execute appropriate police action: Maintain a safe environment for general public and first responders. Conduct a field interview and document ALL details of the event per the guidance provided by the FAA.

QUADCOPTERS & FIXED WING

The national Airspace System

WHERE CAN A DRONE FLY?

Airspace Class:

  • A – 18,000 ft MSL – 60,000 ft MSL

  • B – Busiest airports. Surface to 10,000 ft AGL

  • C – Moderately busy airports. Surface to 4,000 ft AGL. 10 nautical mile radius

  • D – Small Airports. Surface to 2500 ft AGL. 4 nautical mile radius

  • E - All airspace between Class A and Class G

  • G – Uncontrolled. Upper limit varies

TEMPORARY FLIGHT RESTRICTION (TFR)

A Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) is a type of Notices to Airmen (NOTAM). A TFR defines an area restricted to air travel due to a hazardous condition, a special event, or a general warning for the entire FAA airspace. The text of the actual TFR contains the fine points of the restriction.

Flight Authorities

THE AVERAGE JOE

  • Must call airport within 5 miles

  • Limited to class G airspace

  • Can’t get paid

  • Night flights

  • Can’t fly over people

  • Must pass FAA TRUST Test

  • Hobbyist Guide

PROFESSIONAL OR COMMERCIAL

  • Don’t have to call airport unless planning a flight in the airspace

  • Limited to Class G airspace unless authorization

  • Can get paid

  • Night Flights with recent additions

  • May fly over people with recent additions

  • Visual line of site

  • Below 400 & below 100 mph

  • Part 107 Federal Regulations

USUALLY GOVERNMENT

  • Don’t have to call airport unless planning a flight in the airspace

  • Limited to Class G airspace unless authorization

  • Can’t get paid (LE)

  • Night Flights (with stipulation)

  • Fly over people

  • Visual line of site

  • Below 400

  • Below 100 mph

Know Your Authority- Unauthorized Drone Operations.mp4

F.A.A. LAW ENFORCEMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

FAA LEAP agents are assigned to each region for Law Enforcement to report incidents to the FAA. The Texas Leap Agent can be reached at 817-222-5713. Even though it may seem overwhelming, with these simple steps, the law enforcement officer will at least have a starting point for an investigation. When in doubt, follow the steps for D.R.O.N.E. and contact your LEAP agent for guidance. It is better to observe and report instead of violating someone’s rights inadvertently if no one’s life or property is in danger.


Remember, Part 107 dictates where a drone can fly and Government Code 423 dictates what the drone can take photos of. No matter who you are talking to, several questions apply to anyone working the remote.

Interview questions

What is the airspace?

Apps like AirMap can help you immediately determine if the airspace is public or not.

What is the flight authority?

All flights must occur under either hobbyist, part 107, or COA. The FAA says they must have a TRUST certificate, Part 107 license, or copy of the COA available upon request.

What is the drone's weight?

Most drones fall into the .55 to 55lbs category. If so, it must be registered and the drone operator must present that registration upon request.

Can they see it?

The pilot must always keep the drone within "visual line of sight" for at least 3 miles, and must stay under 400' AGL. If they can't see the drone, they don't have visual line of sight.

Are they taking pictures or streaming?

There are many possible State offenses that could be occurring if pictures of private property are being captured without the consent of the owner. Remember that pictures can be stored in a vast number of locations including, SD Cards, internal memory, screen captures, streaming, the cloud, and more. If you have a legitimate offense and pictures are captured, try to determine all of the different places a photo can be stored.

Remember, most people simply don't know all of the rules associated with flying a drone. Keeping the encounter professional and knowing your authority could save you from being a featured video on YouTube. Many times, simply educating someone on the basic flight rules can accomplish your objective.

Law Enforcement can enforce actual criminal laws, but they might not always be laws regarding flight. There may be other violations in accordance with the Penal Code, Government Code 423, or Transportation Code. The FAA is primarily administrative, although they do have some criminal penalties. All UAVs in public airspace must follow the same basic rules regarding Part 107.

Part 107

“Part 107” refers to Code of Federal Regulations Title 14 “Aeronautics and Space” Part 107 “Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems”. This portion of Federal Regulations is two-fold. It sets forth standards that all UAS operators must abide by, as well as setting forth standards to obtain and maintain a Part 107 pilots license with a UAS endorsement. This is not a full part 107 class and merely serves as an overview.

14 CFR 101.41 Adopted rules to allow UAS in the National Airspace System outside of Hobbyists. Hobby and Recreational fliers’ rules can be found in 101.41 and Commercial/Civil pilots can be found under Part 107

NOTAMS & AIRSPACE

Airspace, Temporary Flight Restrictions, Geo-Fences, NOTAMS, METARS... this can all get pretty tricky to keep track of.

Luckily, the internet and a few helpful mobile apps can guide you and help you quickly determine if someone is committing an FAA violation in most instances.

t.r.u.s.t. tEST

Want some options?

TRUST stands for The Recreational UAS Safety Test, and it’s mandatory for all hobbyists/non-commercial drone pilots

The link below will take you to the FAA's link with several options to get your TRUST certificate.

Here is the link to one that I like at the Pilot Institute. I have done many of their on-line courses and the instructor has a good way of presenting. It is free doesn't require too much time.