{"id":33191,"date":"2019-03-01T07:00:04","date_gmt":"2019-03-01T15:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.wrec.coop\/?p=33191"},"modified":"2019-03-01T17:09:45","modified_gmt":"2019-03-02T01:09:45","slug":"an-eye-in-northern-nevadas-sky","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wrec.coop\/an-eye-in-northern-nevadas-sky\/","title":{"rendered":"An Eye in Northern Nevada\u2019s Sky"},"content":{"rendered":"

Drone operator\u2019s career takes flight after retirement<\/p>\n

By Dianna Troyer <\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Talon 1 is Rick\u2019s Phantom 4 Pro Plus drone. Photos courtesy of Rick and Kandi Anderson<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When a bird\u2019s-eye view of a project or building is needed in Northern Nevada, Rick Anderson and his drone, Talon 1, whir into action.<\/p>\n

The 64-year-old Carlin resident bought Talon 1 after retiring in 2016 and has used it to photograph potential mining sites, search for a lost pet, and provide aerial photos of property for real-estate agents, engineering firms and construction companies.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been fun and intense to learn how to fly it and pass a certification test,\u201d Rick says.<\/p>\n

When he earned his Remote Pilot Certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration in 2017, he was required to name and register his drone.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought Talon 1 was a great name, considering what it does,\u201d Rick says of his DJI Phantom 4 Pro Plus. The 12-inch square unmanned aerial aircraft is equipped with a state-of-the-art camera.<\/p>\n

He says he picked the name because an eagle taking food with its talons reminds him of a drone capturing photos and video.<\/p>\n

To bring Talon 1 to life, Rick taps a transmitter button on a control module. It whirs like a buzzing insect and awaits Rick\u2019s instructions for its next mission. Maneuvering joy sticks while watching a screen attached to the module, Rick makes it hover before flying it to its destination. As Talon 1 flies, Rick soars vicariously, seeing from a bird\u2019s perspective hundreds of feet aloft.<\/p>\n

Rick says learning to fly was easier than studying for and passing the Remote Pilot Certificate exam\u2014an FAA requirement if a drone pilot is paid for photos and videos.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was told some people have to take the test several times before passing,\u201d Rick says of the hour-long exam. \u201cI was relieved to pass the first time.\u201d<\/p>\n

The FAA certificate shows that pilots understand regulations, operating requirements and procedures for safely flying drones.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Rick flies Talon 1 in Northern Nevada.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Pilots cannot fly above 400 feet, must maintain a line of sight with their drone, and are prohibited from flying in certain airspaces.<\/p>\n

For drone pilots who want an FAA certificate, Rick recommends studying with Remote Pilot 101\u2014an online training program with quiz questions similar to those on the FAA exam. He also studied materials in the FAA Airman Knowledge Testing Supplement.<\/p>\n

After passing practice tests and studying a few months, Rick registered at the nearest test center\u2014the Magic Valley Regional Airport in Twin Falls, Idaho, 185 miles from home.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, learning to fly a drone was a completely different mindset from my previous work,\u201d says Rick, who retired as a supervisor in the machining and fabrication shop for Newmont Mining north of Carlin. \u201cI was used to welding and machining parts, and here I was in retirement learning some things a pilot would need to know.\u201d<\/p>\n

His wife, Kandi, is an award-winning photographer who specializes in industrial, newborn and maternity portraiture. She suggested he learn to fly a drone to offer more services to her diverse clients. She opened her business after retiring in 2012 as administrative assistant to the Carlin Combined School principal.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith both of us being retired, we enjoy going on shoots together,\u201d Kandi says.<\/p>\n

Rick\u2019s first client, a Canadian mining company, found his drone services through her website.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey wanted an aerial viewpoint of test holes and survey boundaries of a potential mining site near Tuscarora,\u201d he says of the unincorporated community about 50 miles north of Carlin.<\/p>\n

On another assignment, he photographed the Elko Junction Shopping Center so a prospective renter could visualize the size of a building available for lease. The job was his first experience dealing with the complexities of flying near an airport. Although he was not near buildings at the adjacent Elko Regional Airport, he technically flew in its airspace.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
A construction site in Northern Nevada photographed by Rick and Talon 1.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cBefore I could even start, I met with the airport manager to get permission,\u201d Rick says. \u201cPilots were notified of the time I was scheduled to fly. On the flight day, I kept a required radio with me so I could listen for any pilots in the area.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite following guidelines, his drone would not start.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe software shuts it down when it\u2019s in the vicinity of an airport,\u201d he says. \u201cI had to get online to learn how to override it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another time he was asked to find a dog lost during a picnic.<\/p>\n

\u201cI flew but didn\u2019t see it,\u201d Rick says. \u201cSeveral days later, it was found at someone\u2019s house about 17 miles in the opposite direction of where they thought it would be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rick says he has been impressed with Talon 1\u2019s ability to handle diverse assignments and flying conditions.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s stable in windy conditions and can fly 30 miles an hour,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019ve never had a problem with it being carried away or losing sight of it. It\u2019s programmed to return to its launch site.\u201d<\/p>\n

A battery lasts about 30 minutes, so Rick takes five with him and keeps one plugged into a charging system in his vehicle so he can stay onsite as long as necessary.<\/p>\n

Rick says he is available for search-and-rescue missions and whatever a person needs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are so many ways to use a drone,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s really enjoyable to fly one. \u201cSince we\u2019re both retired, we can set our schedule to fly whenever the weather cooperates. We\u2019re doing what we like to do.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Drone operator\u2019s career takes flight after retirement By Dianna Troyer When a bird\u2019s-eye view of a project or building is needed in Northern Nevada, Rick Anderson and his drone, Talon 1, whir into action. The 64-year-old Carlin resident bought Talon 1 after retiring in 2016 and has used it to photograph potential mining sites, search […]\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":33193,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[218,220],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrec.coop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33191"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrec.coop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrec.coop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrec.coop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrec.coop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33191"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrec.coop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33191\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrec.coop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33193"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrec.coop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33191"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrec.coop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33191"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrec.coop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33191"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}