Drones are flying away, how to keep them in view

Drones landed under many Christmas trees this holiday season, but there is a growing problem with the high-tech expensive toys. These unmanned aerial toys are quickly going out of sight during first-time launches.

There are important rules to know when operating a drone for the first time.

Patrick Jackson’s son could not wait to use his drone after receiving it for Christmas.

“He was playing with it, all excited, put it together Christmas evening,” Jackson said.

But, he immediately experienced issues with his present.

“Went out the next day at 8 a.m. in the morning,” Jackson said. “And by 8:30, it was gone.”

Jackson’s son’s flying time was cut short by a gust of wind that blew it out of range.

“We think it went into the lake,” Jackson said. “We’re not sure. We just know that it’s gone.”

The Jackson family searched all over to try and find the drone they had lost.

“I walked around the lake a couple different times; I didn’t see it,” Jackson said. “Drove around the neighborhood, didn’t see it anywhere. Looked up on people’s roofs, didn’t see it, nothing.”

They are not the only people losing sight of their new drones. Other neighbors in Lehigh found them in their backyards.

Drone Pilot John Dulin told WINK News it’s all about keeping drones within view.

“It’s always visual line of sight,” John Dulin said. “You always have to see it at all times.”

Dulin said it’s important to understand the rules of the sky and the elements a drone can handle before using it.

“So they really need to know the limitations first off of their drone,” Dulin said “How long is that battery going to last? How high wind can it handle?”

Jackson said he will do more research before he buys a new drone.

“So I’ll make sure it has a live camera feed and a GPS return mode,” Jackson said. “So if it gets too far out of range, it will come back into range automatically.”