California Angler Catches a Drone in Mid Air

By now you may have seen the footage (below) of the angler in California that nails a drone with one cast from a pier.  Apparently the drone operator was flying his machine close tot he pier and it annoyed a few anglers, so one took it upon himself to try and hit it with a cast.  The whole thing is caught on camera as the first cast to the drone makes a direct hit.  Some news pieces are saying it was illegal to hit the drone, and others are saying the opposite.  The owner of the drone is none too happy and wants to know who the angler was that hit his drone.  He has a mock up of a wanted poster on the U tube video we have at the bottom of the page.   Apparently the person in trouboe could be the angler for breaking a city ordinance since  San Diego’s municipal code states it is illegal to “Cast any fishing line or pole overhead or allow any lure or hook to pass inboard of the pier railing while casting.”   Which is exactly what the angler does to hit the drone.  However there is a question as to legality of flying the drone in a public area in the city limits without a permit or insurance.  There are a lot of federal laws that need to be followed with drone use in public, especially for commercial ventures.

Drone use has certainly been on the rise and many feel it is an invasion of privacy.  However incidents like this are occurring in public places where people are already on camera whether they know it or not.  Not long ago a drone flew over the Charles W Cullen bridge and was flying around anglers and boaters at the Indian River Inlet.  Many of the anglers at the rail did not like the drone flying directly in front of them.  We were contacted asking what can be done and would it be legal to hit it with a weight, these folks were none too happy they were being filmed.  There has been a lot of controversy over drone use as far as when, where, and how.  As far as flying one in a Delaware State Park you need a special permit from the parks and there are certain requirements in order to fly a drone for each park.  This was recently sent to people inquiring about drone use in a Delaware State Park “We have just approved a drone use policy for the Division.  Just to let you know it is a very restrictive policy and you will need to apply for a special use permit.  The policy criteria must be met and the permit must have the signature of the director if it moves on from the park for his signature. If you are interested in applying for a permit please contact the Park Superintendent at the individual parks. “   I do no know the specifics of the requirements for this permit, nor do I know how an angler would be treated or charged for knocking one out of the air with a cast.  I would not recommend you try either.  We have enough problems at the inlet with Johnny lead lobbers from the rocks as it is with boats.

Below is the video of the angler in California that nailed a drone on the first cast.  We do not recommend you try this if you see a drone in use in a state park.  If you feel the drone is inhibiting your time in the park, call the dispatch emergency number for the park rangers …  302 739 4580.

Fish on!!

Rich King