Drone News: Drone Flies Above Blue Angels, FAA FRIA Map, and a Burglary Suspect Caught by a Drone

First up is your “Don’t be that guy” segment… A video was posted this week of a drone pilot flying over the Blue Angels near Pensacola Beach, FL. The drone appeared to be in the flight path of the jets, though slightly higher. The footage has since been deleted off of social media. Please do not be that guy and do not interfere with other air traffic. We’ll keep you updated as we see how this story progresses. Next up, the FAA finally released a FRIA map! This new interactive map functions similarly to the UAS Facilities map, but displays FRIAs instead of airspace! The map includes information about each FRIA including the site name, Affiliated CBO, approval & expiration date, and address. This is a great site along with FRIAmap.com for recreational flyers to find FRIAs! Last up, a burglary suspect was taken into custody after a drone observed them breaking into multiple vehicles. A DFR drone returning from a mission was used to survey a parking lot at a busy area when the operator noted a man acting suspiciously. After watching the man for a short time, the police operator observed the man use a screw driver to break into a vehicle, where he spent several minutes before breaking into another vehicle. Police units responded and were directed to the vehicle the man was in, where he was arrested. This is an interesting, secondary use of a DFR drone. Have a great week, and we’ll see you on Monday for the Live! We'll be in booths 209/210, and 2141 Meet the team, get swag, see the airplane, and try out our new VR systems for airplane training! https://dronexl.co/2024/07/17/reckless-drone-pilot-endangers-blue-angels/ https://dronexl.co/2024/07/12/faa-map-drone-remote-id-fria-areas/ https://faa.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=8f274117010f4eb1a50f64c1719be12b https://www.friamap.com/ https://ktla.com/news/local-news/police-drone-in-southern-california-busts-burglary-suspect-in-the-act/