Before You Come

General piloting guidelines 

  • Unlawful flight, such as flights near an event at locations where flying is prohibited, can result in withdrawal from the event. All pilots must attend a general safety briefing and sign the appropriate waivers from the race organizer and venue. 
  • All pilots must be able to demonstrate effective Fail-Safe procedures, this is a “Drop” method, where the aircraft will immediately cease flight by stopping all motors and operation if it loses contact with the radio transmitter. 
  • All pilots must have an “ARMING” position switch or sequence on their radio. The aircraft should not power up by any accidental controls from the radio. Aircraft arming must be executed via a control switch. 
  • All pilots must demonstrate an airworthy airframe and pass a general mechanics and electronics test. 
  • All batteries must be transported in and stored in LiPo-safe bags or an approved fire-resistant container. 
  • Pilots must use FPV to pilot aircraft. This can be with goggles or a ground station, LCD type display. 
  • Pilots will not power up video transmitters unless instructed to do so. Powering up a video transmitter at all other times may result in an immediate removal from the festival and any competitions or giveaways. 
  • Pilots must adhere to all rules within the festival venue and will not fly in any other part of the venue unless it is a designated flight zone. 
  • Pilots must contain all equipment and, airframes within the designated pilot pit area. A public charging area will be available and 120v outlets will be supplied. It is recommended that racers bring personal chargers and extension cord. 
  • General charging of electronic devices including radios or any device with a self- contained power supply is permitted. 
  • All batteries must be stored in a LiPo-safe bag or in an approved, fire-resistant container.

Pilot Responsibilities 

  • Pilots are responsible for operating and maintaining their own equipment.

Airframe general guidelines 

  • All airframes must pass a safety and airworthiness inspection. Once the airframe has been checked and approved, it must not be modified or changed, or it will require to be re-inspected. Airframes should be repaired with equivalent parts that were originally used during check-in. The inspector has the final decision on whether an airframe is accepted and/or requires changes or modifications in order to be approved for the festival. 

Video Transmitters Power 

  • Outputs: 25mw or dynamic. 
  • Required Channels: Race band 1-8, Digital 1-7
  • Powering up at any time when not flying may result in immediate removal from any further flights & Competitions during the weekend. 
  • All pilots must be able to completely understand all operations of their Tx and be able to switch channels and power as required by the flight zone. In all non-flying cases, Tx’s must be off. Channels will be shown at each flight station. Pilots must be able to switch channels on their VTX with relative ease if required by the event organiser.
  • Pilots will only have the ability to change channels/flight lines when instructed, usually on the hour.

Field, structure, and venue operations

  • The Field is explicitly controlled by the event’s event organisers and staff members of the festival. These officials have the ability to ground any pilot for any reason and have the ability to stop flight at any time for any reason. 
  • The field and the venue are governed by the venue’s owner & staff. 
  • The field is a restricted grounds and airspace, and only authorized personnel are allowed on the flying grounds. 
  • All flights are grounded while there are personnel actively on the field. Personnel engaged in active recovery of any airframe must immediately remove all battery power from the aircraft upon contact. 
  • A First Aid station will be available during the event.  
  • Event organizers must have 2-way radios with a specific channel designated for flight operations and first aid/emergency communications. 
  • All organisers (operations, flight) must have access to a radio. It is highly recommended that any airframe recovery personnel on the field also have a radio. 
  • Drone recovery crews must not enter the field until all aircraft have landed. Drone recovery crews must expediently remove all airframe parts, components and various debris from the field and do a quick analysis of the airframe to see if all parts have been retrieved. If an airframe is still powered and props are spinning, crew members must try to safely indicate via hand signals through the pilot camera the Thumbs Down signal to indicate to the pilot to power down their aircraft. In all cases do not attempt to handle an aircraft that has motors engaged, spinning or is on fire. Use netting to cover the craft and attempt to neutralize.

Course rules of engagement

  • If a flight is ordered stopped for any reason, pilots will be instructed by the event organiser and must follow all procedures prescribed. Pilots failing to adhere to event organiser declarations may result in an immediate dismissal from the event. 
  • Pilots must stay within all prescribed flight paths. 
  • Pilots must keep all aircraft in the disarmed state until the pilot has given 5m distance from the aircraft and field staff have left the area.
  • Pilots must always maintain control of their aircraft and only fly within their skill level. 
  • Any pilot who exhibits unsafe flying procedures may be asked to land at any time from the event. 
  • Once pilots have successfully completed their flight, they must return to their take off/landing pad, land and DISARM. 
  • Pilots may have multiple airframes, each airframe must pass all safety and airworthiness checks before flying. The event organiser has the right to ground any pilot for any reason if the pilot or piloting behaviour is deemed

Emergency or Fail-Safe Procedures

  • Should a pilot lose control of their aircraft, the pilot must attempt a safe landing, fly into a prescribed, crash, ‘catch’ zone net, cut throttle in a safe area, or execute a fail- safe procedure in a safe area. 
  • If a pilot loses video, they must immediately execute a fail-safe procedure and/or attempt to land the aircraft via Line of Sight. 
  • All spotters must assist pilot in determining the location of their aircraft. 
  • Spotters must always maintain visual line of sight of the corresponding pilot’s airframe and must provide verbal directions or situational awareness details to the pilot if and when required.