back to article Sky regulators brace for millions of Xmas toy drone sales

The Civil Aviation Authority reckons a million and a half consumer drones will be sold over Christmas – and the aviation regulator hopes new dronies will read and obey the law of the skies. The CAA, whose Dronecode app summarises the dense legalese of the Air Navigation Order into plain English that anyone can understand, …

  1. smudge
    WTF?

    One law for the plebs...

    ... and another for an old, fat bearded bloke in red and white, flying a craft that almost certainly doesn't have type approval or an airworthiness certificate, using an unconventional and polluting power source, and violating all regulations about flying near buildings - even landing on them FFS!

    1. Lee D Silver badge

      Re: One law for the plebs...

      Not to mention the animal cruelty.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: One law for the plebs...

        And I understand he helps himself to peoples's larders while he's there, too. When he's not dispensing "gifts for the kiddies," that is. He even maintains a list of them, describing which ones are nice and which are "naughty." :-o

        Dirty old man!

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Unhappy

      Re: One law for the plebs...

      > "...using an unconventional and polluting power source..."

      The carbon emissions are rather high too.

  2. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

    By boxing day a good proportion of them are going to be wedged in trees, TV aerials and any other snags that happen to be about.

    1. DNTP

      Aww yeah free drones and I get to climb a tree.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Within a week less than 1% will still be air-worthy. Still, that week will be hellish for the aviation crowd. Thankfully, Santa will be safely back at his workshop before that happens!

      1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

        That;s what I came here to say too. Half will be busted within the week, probably by the end of Boxing day. Then a significant number will be left gathering dust once the initial excitement wears off.

  3. Mark 85

    Hope?

    the aviation regulator hopes new dronies will read and obey the law of the skies.

    Well we all know about how hoping in one hand, doing something nasty in the other and seeing which will fill up faster will turn out.

    1. Steve Davies 3 Silver badge

      Re: Hope?

      the aviation regulator hopes new dronies will read and obey the law of the skies.

      There is as much chance of that happening as their is of the big man in red fitting through the non existant chimney at my place. i.e. Zero.

      Then in other news, sales of BB Guns have soared.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Hope?

        He's aware of the chimney problem, and has contracted with Amazon this year to have his goodies delivered by, um... drones.

  4. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

    1.5 million drone sales

    "A week-long web survey conducted in late November, comprising 2,000 adults, came up with the (extrapolated) 1.5 million drone sales figure. It seems a bit OTT but there is a more serious point to be made.

    They could always ask Customs and/or retailers how many have been imported for the Xmas period and see if that comes even close to their own guestimates.

  5. HKmk23

    You have

    Never been able to legislate against idiocy......then as previously posted between 50% and 90% of the Crimbo drones will have self-destructed within 24 hours of first take off.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: You have

      Consumerism at its finest.

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