Can You Fly a Drone in Myrtle Beach? You Won’t Believe This!

Myrtle Beach is an excellent place to spend the day with friends and family. It has some beautiful views of its sandy beaches that would be perfect for a drone shot- but are they accessible by air?

Myrtle Beach does not have any rules or regulations against using drones in the city limits – it only follows Federal Drone Regulations. But there are some flights that cannot be made due to FAA Drone Rules.

Rules and Regulations You Need to Follow When Flying at The Beach

The FAA currently does not have any laws preventing people from using drones near or at the beach. If a person were to use one of these devices they would need to make sure they are abiding by all of the drone rules and regulations including staying away from airports, restricted airspace zones, and national parks.

Some of these rules and regulations may pose a concern for you when flying, making your flight unlawful; which is why it’s important to pay attention to them.

Law 01: Maintain Visual Line of Sight

When I am traveling my drone at the beach, it becomes difficult to restrain myself from flying out into the vast open water. But because this has many risks involved – such as the battery dying before I make it back – there are certain limitations to how far I’m allowed to travel before losing sight of my drone. The FAA requires me to keep track of where my drone is, but also keep in mind that my battery might die before I make it back – so keeping an eye on what’s going on around me is important for all these reasons.

To maintain the visual line of sight, the pilot or another person assisting them as an observer must keep track of the drone at all times. Even if you have a DJI-brand drone which is capable of flying miles away from its controller without disconnecting, if you cannot see it, then you are breaking FAA regulations and could incur a fine.

Unfortunately, you cannot use the FPV camera on your drone to keep an eye on it either. It is also important to note that weather conditions will affect how well your drone flies so it’s best to double-check these before visiting the beach.

Law 02: Stay Below Maximum Allowable Altitude

Drone pilots must fly their drones below 400 feet in accordance with FAA drone rules and regulations. Pilots are required to keep their drones away from all aircrafts, which has been found to reduce the chances of collision; just make sure you check what altitude you can fly your drone at before traveling internationally.

Law 03: Don’t Fly Over People

This is the most crucial rule to follow when flying a drone at the beach. Since beaches are populated with many pedestrians- some walking through crowds while others sunbathe on busy days- it’s important that you pay close attention to what you’re doing. Why? The FAA has a law against drones being flown directly over people which means this type of event should be avoided for now.

It doesn’t matter how many people you fly over- it could be one person or it could be a group of people who aren’t part of the flight. It might seem beautiful from some angles, but don’t do this because flying over people is prohibited.

Popular beaches will usually have many people who are there to spend time with their family, which means you would need to move away from those people if you want to fly your drone.

Law 04: Pay Attention To Community Based Guidelines

There are various levels of rules and regulations that all enthusiasts must be mindful of:

• National Law: The National laws are the various laws put together by the FAA for all pilots in the country need to follow.
• State Law: The State laws are the different laws put together by the various States in order to regulate drones in that specific State.
• City Laws: City laws that are put together by the different cities within a state to control the use of drones in that City.

One can only fly safely if they abide by each and every one of these rules. To do so, it is important to become knowledgeable about the area you will be flying over – this way, safety will never be compromised.

You can always find the information you need on the internet by looking for it or asking around. You’ll want to double-check with your local authority though just to make sure you’re following all of the guidelines.

If you research and find that there are no specific laws about flying drones in the air space you wish to explore, then it is important to adhere to the national aviation authorities – such as the FAA – which have been established by your country.

Law 05: Stay Away From Airports

As a pilot, you should know that it is illegal to fly drones within five miles of an airport grounds. Some airports are located near popular beaches – so if you plan on flying at one location then make sure its outside of the five mile radius to avoid any legal ramifications.

As a hobbyist drone pilot, I can request access from LAANC (Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability) to fly within the vicinity of an airport. It is important to do your research about the area you want to fly over in order to not break any local laws or ordinances when flying over a public beach for example.

3 Tips For Flying at Myrtle Beach

You may have flown drones in various places over the years, but I can assure you that flying at the beach is an entirely different experience. The beaches will limit your ability to fly there due to strict laws prohibiting these practices.

Tip 01: Don’t Fly Too Low or Too High

When flying near the beach, it is crucial to keep your drone at an appropriate altitude. If you fly too low you run the risk of crashing and becoming just another submersible in the water below. It is also prohibited to fly above 400 feet above ground level due to FAA regulations so make sure that you check with them before attempting this feat!

In addition, the wind speed increases as altitude rises. These fast-moving gusts can cause turbulence that makes it hard for airplanes to fly properly and may lead them to crash.

Tip 02: Take Off & Land Away From The Sand

It is important to find a spot of safety before taking off and landing your drone. You cannot take off or land on any surface other than hard surfaces, otherwise you risk crashing into things and potentially breaking your device. In order for drones to work, they need propellers spinning at high speeds so they can create enough thrust force to carry the weight of the drone in the air, even when gravity tugs against it.

Although it is possible for sand to get caught up in the propellers when taking off or landing- which could loosen the propellers and cause you to crash your drone – there are ways of preventing this such as building a platform.

You could also have sand particles lodge themselves into the open areas of the drone or its gimbal.

Tip 03: Vision and Infrared Sensing Systems Might Be Affected

DJI has announced that the performance of its Vision System and Infrared Sensing System will vary based on what surface it is flown over. This is one of the reasons drones with these technologies will often struggle at flying near-transparent surfaces, or at bodies of water for example.

When flying over water, many believe you should either turn VPS on or off depending upon how high up you are. If you’re going to fly under thirty feet from the surface of the water then turn it off so as not to affect your flight path and make crashing inevitable

But, if you’re flying higher than that then you won’t have a problem. If you do experience difficulties, simply fly up high or just take the drone back and turn your virtual private server off to save money.