A drone is any gadget that moves and can be controlled remotely, and it is getting more uses these days. Usually, we call these as "Remote Control " (RC) toys. But with drones being used extensively by the military these days either for surveillance or for offensive purpose and reported by the mainstream media these days, the term "drone" has taken over use of the RC term.

Drones are slowly being considered for commercial civilian uses, such as delivering orders, which Amazon.com is planning to do or for quick emergency response such for law enforcement and medical emergencies. The media companies are also looking into using more drones to cover news events and for hobbyists, more easy to use, affordable, feature-packed, and camera-equipped drones are also readily available for purchase.

Drone use in airsoft is also getting more prevalent, more of as providing aerial footage of the game rather as an intelligence gathering tool though some airsoft events are allowing drones to be part of the game. Some videos on YouTube show some hobbyists mounting airsoft guns on some quadcopters which means that soon some drones might be used in airsoft events that will really shoot BBs from above.

With the increasing use of drones, there is also an increasing concern in terms of safety and ethical use. There are incidents of drones that fail while in flight and falling into the crowd below. Some drones flying close to airports turn themselves into potential dangers to aircraft with actual human passengers. Even the camera drones flying above the neighborhood may be violating the privacy of homeowners. And in one instance one man was arrested for flying a drone near an accident scene to take some news footages but preventing an emergency helicopter from landing.

Yes, there will be mayhem as more powerful and affordable drones get into the hands of people who just fly these anywhere without recognizing the potential danger and privacy violation that they might cause.

Then there are laws that one need to contend with. In the U.S.A., drone hobbyists must follow the FAA regulations governing model aircraft which means not within 5 miles of airports, not above 400 feet, keeping it always in sight, must not cause damage to property, and must not be in populated areas. The FAA plans to have new regulations governing civilian drones that weigh below 55 pounds by the end of the year. Ignoring such rules can lead to fines to about US$10,000.00.

Then there is the issue of using camera drones for personal or commercial purposes. Just go to YouTube and you'll see thousands of videos where drones are used for shooting sporting events such as airsoft, or just plain showing some aerial views of locations. As of now, using such drones or unmanned aerials systems (UAS) for commercial purposes is still illegal in the U.S.. If you follow the FAA guidelines on model aircraft and the videos are for personal purposes, then you are ok. But what about those drone video footages where there are ads being shown with them on YouTube?

Outdoor event organizers are turning to drones to get some nice aerial shots of events as they are way cheaper as compared to renting a helicopter which comes with a pilot and a camera man. But since the battery lives of many civilian drones are still short, there is the danger of these falling into spectators below and causing injuries. The best way is for the event organizers to plan waypoints around the venue where the drones can follow and avoid crowds below their route while still taking good footages.

Will all of these concern you as an airsoft player who uses a drone to capture in-game footage? Indeed they do as you might incur liabilities if that drone you are remotely piloting crashes into a player or might cause damage to property. Also, if you are earning from it via the ad-sharing scheme of YouTube, then you can be accused of using your video for commercial purposes.

Always check with your country or local laws on the use of civilian drones if there are any. There are still a lot of gray areas and governments are just waking up to the proliferation of such flying devices. Drones, fun as they are to use, can be a nuisance to some and can become public hazards.