By Marcus Uhe
Cranbourne resident Dallas Goldburg has defended the use of drones in the community after concerns were raised about their use for sinister activity last week.
Two callers from Cranbourne spoke to Neil Mitchell’s 3AW radio program on Tuesday 8 March claiming that they had been victims of drone attacks, alleging that objects such as frozen water balloons and a padlock had been dropped onto their Lesdon Avenue homes by a drone flying above.
Mr Goldburg has been flying drones recreationally for three-to-four years since taking it up the hobby.
He believes that the poor behaviour of a small minority of users is besmirching the reputation of a largely well-behaved group.
“The way I see it is, the majority of people flying are doing it safely and legally,” Mr Goldburg said. “The majority of flyers follow the guidelines but there’s always going to be someone who does the wrong thing.
“It’s the same as cars going through a red light or speed camera.
“Those callers had no evidence linking the damage to drone use, it was all speculation.”
Civil Aviation Safety Authority guidelines state that drones must not be flown in populous areas, which are defined as “anywhere people are living or gathered for a purpose,” and not over people “at any time”.
Drones must not be flown closer than 30 metres to people or higher than 120 metres above ground level.
They can only be flown during the day and users must be able to see the device at all times with their own eyes, without the assistance of binoculars and goggles or any other vision-enhancing device.
Police said on Thursday 10 March that they are aware of the alleged drone attacks and that an investigation is ongoing.
Anyone who has experienced a similar incident or with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
