Drone safety and respect urged by police as new fleet of Christmas gifts hits the sky

Police are reminding Calgarians to fly their drones legally and respectfully, now that a fresh batch ofunmanned aerial vehicles ishitting the sky.

"If you received the gift of flight over the holiday season, please ensure you are aware of the restrictions on these devices," police said in a release.

"Dronesthat are flown in an unsafe manner can endanger lives, aircraft and property."

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While regulated byTransport Canada,police officers are thefirst responders to complaints of unsafe drone flights and warnthey will conduct "a full investigation" and laycharges, if appropriate,in each particular case.

But the Calgary Police Service is hoping education will avoid those situationsfor the most part.

Police are reminding the public of advice from Transport Canada on the recreational use of drones.

Drone users are asked to not fly the devices:

• Closer than ninekilometresfrom any airport, heliport, or aerodrome.
• Higher than 90 metres above the ground.
• Closer than 150 metres from people, animals, buildings, structures, or vehicles.
• In populated areas or near large groups of people, including sporting events, concerts, festivals, and firework displays.
• Near moving vehicles, highways, bridges, busy streets or anywhere you could endanger or distract drivers.
• Within restricted and controlled airspace, including near or over military bases, prisons, and forest fires.
• Anywhere you may interfere with first responders.

In general, you are advised to:

• Obtain permission from the landowner (which includes The City of Calgary) before flying yourdrone.
• Fly yourdroneduring daylight hours and in good weather (not in clouds or fog).
• Keep yourdronein sight, where you can see it with your own eyes not only through an on-board camera, monitor or smartphone.
• Make sure yourdroneis safe for flight before take-off. Ask yourself, for example:Are the batteries fully charged? Is it too cold to fly?
• Know if you need to apply for a Special Flight Operations Certificate.
• Respect the privacy of others avoid flying over private property or taking photos or videos without permission.

Transport Canada has also released a flow chart to help determine which drone rules apply to you, depending on the size of the device and what you're using it for (click the image for higher-resolution PDF).