Central Texas Drone User Group

Central Texas Drone User Group This is a group for people in Central Texas who are interested in building and flying drones. We are Let's learn from each other and have some fun.

This is a group for amateur and professional drone users committed to promoting the use of flying robots for civilian, recreational, agricultural, search and rescue as well as hobby purposes. We get together as a community to share tips, experiences, and to fly. All experience levels are welcome. The Central Texas Drone User Group is a member of the Drone User Group Network, an association of comm

unity groups that promotes the use of civilian drone technology for the benefit of humanity. From the DUGN site:

The Drone User Group Network is an association of community organizations that seek to promote the responsible use of flying robots for the benefit of humanity. We strive for a future in which robots empower individuals to make the world richer, safer, and full of possibility. We also believe that innovation and progress shouldn’t be the exclusive domain of governments and giant corporations, and we strive to make drone technology as widely accessible as possible. We welcome amateur and professional users alike. Most importantly, we think that flying robots are a lot of fun!We seek to accomplish our mission through community service projects, educational events, build parties, art projects, fly-ins, and advocacy. During this period where it is illegal in many countries to sell drone services, we see a unique opportunity to give away our assistance to worthy causes and organizations in order to show the potential of this technology and to have a positive impact in the world.As an organization we adhere to and encourage our members to respect the following guidelines:

Safe and competent use of drones: Drones, like any tool such as a car or hammer, have some risks associated with their use. We seek to operate our equipment in a manner that does not threaten anyone’s safety, person, or privacy. Educating our membership about safe and respectful practices is a core part of our mission. Legal use of drones: Although we may not agree with many of the current regulations, we also believe in following the law of the land. Humane use of drones: We like our flying robots to help people, not hurt them, and we are always seeking new ways to use our drones that will have a positive impact in our society.

09/16/2018

I am currently in the process of shutting down the Central Texas Drone Users Group due to lack of time to devote to managing it and hosting events. It's been an honor and a pleasure in connecting with all of you.

If anyone is interested in taking over this Facebook and also the Meetup group please let me know.

Thanks,
Tony Acerra

Really interesting engineering competition using remote controlled vehicles.  The CTDUG will be putting together a team ...
11/21/2017

Really interesting engineering competition using remote controlled vehicles. The CTDUG will be putting together a team to compete. Contact Tony Acerra if wanting to join the 10 member team.

Turner Logic will celebrate National Engineers Week by hosting an Open Engineering Competition. Please check out the full post for details.

09/23/2017

We are having a fun fly today at Kitty Hawk flying field out off FM 2252 in Garden Ridge if anyone is interested in coming out to fly, learn and hang out. Hope to see you there!

Saturday, September 23, 2017
3:00 PM
Kitty Hawk Flying Field
20180 FM 2252
Garden Ridge, TX

09/08/2017

The CTDUG team from San Antonio have returned from the Rockport relief efforts.

We were working with a larger team from all over the US helping the Aransas County tax assessor’s office get detailed aerials of the front and back of damaged homes in the area. These photos will be evaluated by the office to establish property damage/loss numbers to calculate values to help get emergency FEMA funds and rework their property tax assessments.

Our team of 2 pilots and 1 VO/driver worked entire neighborhoods quickly and efficiently by setting up a ground station system in the bed of a pickup truck where the pilots flew 2 DJI Phantoms while a driver kept them mobile and safe. 1 pilot was photographing the front of the damaged homes while the other pilot was photographing the back. FAA regulations stipulate that operations can be performed from a moving vehicle in sparsely populated areas – which is what the areas we were working qualified as.

Our setup and system was pretty awesome if I do say so myself. The DJI Phantom 4 basic and Phantom 4 Pro UAS performed excellently other than having a bit of connection quality issues in the harsh environment we found ourselves in. The battery situation was the most challenging as we didn’t have nearly enough batteries to be charging while we were flying – which is why I was so desperately asking the community for more. Fortunately the team we were with had plenty and lent us some to keep us in the air. The challenge with that was making sure all our equipment was labelled properly so as to not get them mixed up. Lesson learned folks: Label your equipment with your name/phone/company even if you don’t think it will ever be needed. It’s a very good idea. Actually even going a step further and adding serial number to keep them straight between yourselves for charging cycle purposes.

All the people in the neighborhood were happy to see us gathering data on their behalf to get them financial help sooner than later. Our pilots did the work of a whole team of tax assessors in a fraction of the time it would have taken them. We were doing good and important work that had real tangible benefits to the storm victims which felt amazing and like we were making a difference.

We met a lot of great people and professionals during this project and are happy to have participated.

Here are some links to the photos and a map of the Cove Harbor marina we made while doing the relief work over the weekend.

Google Drive with photos by date: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B2ANogzuELzCSjJrUVBpOU9qOE0

Some of the drone photo samples we took for the official project are in 2017.09.05 date. Check out the videos at least.

Map of Cove Harbor Marina and trashed dry stack boat storage: http://skycatch.io/m/Za4za204eG

The group of pilots from San Antonio heading out to help with the relief efforts have setup a GoFundMe donation site to ...
09/01/2017

The group of pilots from San Antonio heading out to help with the relief efforts have setup a GoFundMe donation site to help defray costs for the myriad supplies, gas and food required to be self-sufficient while helping. All donations will be greatly appreciated and any funds left over will go towards a relief organization doing good in the area.

As you know, Houston is in big trouble. The Red Cross has put out a call for professional drone pilots to help with aerial surveying and mapping so they can determine evac routes and assess the situation on the ground. We are dispatching from San Antonio 4 pilots with gear and others who are supp...

Yay FAA!  We dont get a chance to say that very often.  This is the time to let us help and they are.
08/31/2017

Yay FAA! We dont get a chance to say that very often. This is the time to let us help and they are.

The Federal Aviation Administration had issued 43 unmanned aircraft system authorizations to drone operators supporting the response and recovery for Hurricane Harvey or covering it as part of the media.

The authorizations cover a broad range of activities by local, state and federal officials who are conducting damage assessments of critical infrastructure, homes and businesses to help target, prioritize and expedite recovery activities. To learn more about this process visit our website, http://bit.ly/2gsWEYb.

To apply for an FAA authorization email [email protected]

08/31/2017

A group of pilots from the Central Texas Drone Users Group is organizing and will be going to Houston to help with a record-breaking aerial mapping effort for the Red Cross. The maps being developed will be used to help organize relief efforts for flood affected areas.

To assist us with this effort we are making a call to the public with requests for specific drone systems and batteries to borrow for the mapping missions.

The following drone system and batteries would be very useful for short-term loan to the volunteer pilots:

1. Phantom 4 Pro
2. Phantom 4 Advanced
3. Phantom 4 high-capacity battery

If you or someone you know is willing to allow us to borrow any of the above listed equpiment we would be much appreciative for the loan.

Please contact Tony Acerra at [email protected] or (210) 867-8780 for coordinating pickup and drop off of the equipment.

Guinness World Records fastest drone record set by the Drone Racing League techs using a custom built mini quad.  Over 1...
07/15/2017

Guinness World Records fastest drone record set by the Drone Racing League techs using a custom built mini quad. Over 165mph average speed.

Big news.
Fastest drone? ✔️
Guinness World Records ✔️
163.5 MPH. Introducing the RacerX

More information: http://bit.ly/2uqJG2R

05/20/2017

MultiGP in association with the City of Castroville and Drone Port Texas is hosting a drone race as part of the 4th of July festivities for the city. There will be cash prizes and will draw some reaaaalllllyyyy fast pilots to the event. I'm looking forward to this one!

The first Castroville Drone Racing Competition will be held as part of the 2017 Old-Fashioned 4th of July Weekend Celebration in the City of Castroville, Texas.

Federal Appeals Court: The FAA's Registration Rule Violates Section 336This is a good step in the right direction for op...
05/20/2017

Federal Appeals Court: The FAA's Registration Rule Violates Section 336

This is a good step in the right direction for opening up the social perceptions that drones are inherently dangerous or misused. Let's all continue to be responsible pilots out there and not give Congress more reasons to push other - possibly worse - legislation through. Work with your communities to educate and train new pilots. Get the word out about responsible flying.

Article Federal Appeals Court: The FAA's Registration Rule Violates Section 336 Model Aircraft & Drone Advocacy

Good to see San Antonio first responders using drone tech in a positive way.
03/02/2017

Good to see San Antonio first responders using drone tech in a positive way.

The San Antonio police and fire departments have plans in the works to start using drones as part of their operations.

Great article on business mapping operations featuring San Antonio's own Justin Moore with Airborn Aerial Photography.  ...
02/26/2017

Great article on business mapping operations featuring San Antonio's own Justin Moore with Airborn Aerial Photography. Really useful information for you Part 107 operators.

Drone Service Providers Weigh in On Determining Price Points

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