Drone Ban in Chicago Approved

It has been before Chicago's City Council since July and now it has finally been approved. Chicago now has rules and bans for drones in and around Chicago. Since Chicago is the first large U.S. city to adopt such a measure on drones, here's more.

I have never flown one. I've seen them around the Rockford area. It looks like a fun toy, fun hobby, useful surveying tool, and more. After all, it's a drone. Chicago this week becomes the first major city in the U.S. to adopt a ban on drones from flying near airports and schools, among other designated places in Chicago.

According to NBC Chicago, "The new rules ban drones from flying within five miles of an airport and within a quarter of a mile from schools, hospitals and places of worship, near power lines, water treatment plants and city water intake facilities.
The rules also prohibit drones from flying at an altitude of more than 400 feet, and drones will not be allowed to fly directly over people or personal property without consent of the person or property owner. The measure also includes a rule that makes it illegal to fly drones between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m.".

Plus, residence of Chicago who own drones will also be required to register the drones for a cost of $50 each year, and they will have to take out an insurance policy to cover personal injury and property damage.

It seems rather steep for drone users, but if you remember a drone did crash into a tree on a White House lawn in January. On July 21, 2016. A drone also crashed at Midway International Airport while the U.S. National Guard was conducting a Blackhawk helicopter training mission this summer prompting the new rules and guidelines.

Rockford's most memorably use of a drone was flying with the Rockford Firefighters at that big warehouse fire on 11th Street in Rockford last summer.

The penalties for violators of the new Chicago rules will face fines ranging from $500 to $5,000 per incident and could face up to 180 days in jail.

If you have a drone, looks like the sky is no longer the limit when it comes to privacy and safety.