Live at 6 | SU Drone Policy

Justine Murray Syracuse, N.Y. (CitrusTV) – Drones are not something that should be packed in college suitcases after reading the updated Syracuse University Drone Policy.

SU just placed stricter regulations on flying drones around campus. These new rules are strict; some students feel it is now impossible to bring a drone to college at all. An organized flight plan must be created and shown to The Office of Risk Management and Regulatory Compliance. Along with the flight plan, documentation of insurance and registration of the drone with the FAA must be given to get approval.

Drone requests must include a specific time and location for take off and landing, along with verification of notification to SUNY Upstate Medical University’s helipad manager. SU is taking extra measures to ensure either a DPS or Fire and Life Safety officer is with you at all times while using your drone.

SU Sophomore Andres Victoria believes these protocols are important to the safety of students.

“The rules show that the university is listening to some people,” he said.”I look forward to what policies will be made in the future.”

Other students feel that they are not being heard and believe this is an infringement on their right to fly freely. SU Sophomore Julia Duarte is an experienced flyer of drones who expressed how the stringency of the policy does not correspond with the inherent dangers of flying a drone, which are relatively low. She finds the process of handling one fairly simple and doesn’t understand why you would need an official to monitor the flight.

While Julia and most other young drone owners normally fly the contraption for fun, Syracuse banned the use of drones for recreational purposes, which Jullia says  makes it seem pointless for her to bring her drone to school.

SU Junior Nichole Evans believes this policy makes it less likely for any student to fly their drone here. SU Student Ali Klaber agrees with this perspective. She predicts that others will just fly their drones off campus or avoid the protocols of flying it on the premises.

“Some students would just rather get in trouble than have to go through all of this,” she said.

Evans and Klaber say all of the rules for flights on campus seems like an invasion of privacy, and they wonder about the college’s motives.

“Why do they really need to know that a college student is flying a drone?” Evans asked. “In fact why do we have a drone policy?”

The campus has not made the protocol widely known, and the assumption that there’s no need for protocol on campus makes the girls wonder if other students will fly their drones before even knowing that the policy exists.