Says City Improperly Cited Him For Flying His Aircraft

The village of South Elgin, IL west of Chicago passed a law in February requiring drone pilots to obtain a permit before flying their aircraft over public parks, but the first person cited under the ordinance has hired a lawyer to fight the $50 dollar fine imposed by the village.

Keith Kmieciak essentially dared the village to fine him. He announced his intention to fly over Jim Hansen park without a permit at a village board meeting Tuesday. Then, he did so, with a local blogger capturing and posting a video on YouTube of Kmieciak being issued a citation.

Kmieciak claims that the village cannot regulate airspace ... which is the purview of the FAA ... and that he did not violate the ordinance because he did not take off or land from the park, but rather from the a public street, according to The Daily Herald newspaper. 

But village attorney Derke Price says the city has every right to require the permits. Price said the FAA regulates airspace above 500 feet, and Kmieciak was operating his aircraft at about 130 feet. Price said the village will report Kmieciak to the FAA for violating its rules against flying over people not directly involved in the aircraft's operation, but Kmieciak claims those rules do not apply to hobbyists like himself.

The city says that requiring a permit allows residents who do not want to risk appearing in a video or photograph captured by the aircraft to be informed ahead of time so that they can avoid the park while the aircraft is being flown. The village has issued two permits since it enacted its ordinance.

(Image from YouTube video)

FMI: www.southelgin.com, Video