Greeetings, I probably should have posted an intro before I posted in other threads, but oh well...
I'm a retired Marine CH-46E pilot (with over 2,000 hours in fixed wing and rotary wing aircraft) living in Virginia Beach. Getting into the drone flying because my medical is currently denied and I still need to scratch the flying itch... Licensed by FAA as a Commercial Single Engine Land/Helicopter pilot with instrument ratings for both airplane and helicopter. Once I get my medical back, I'm planning on adding the 107 endorsement and also moving on to the Regional Airlines (they're heavily recruiting military helo guys right now). Currently working as a Federal Government Civil Servant, training young Marines in the intricacies of Close Air Support.
Bought a used GoPro Karma on eBay, that appeared to be in pretty good shape - and the guy accepted my offer of $400 for the drone, two batteries, and four sets of blades. Unlike some Karmas on eBay - this one included the gimbal and the grip. It got delivered last night, and it's in really good shape - with the exception of the right rear arm. It's missing the cap at the bottom that covers the LED lights. Couldn't find it in the package at all, so I'm assuming it wasn't damaged in shipping. Ordered a new arm to replace it. Haven't been able to check the operation of the drone/gimbal - my Hero 5 should ship today. Was able to get everything powered up and updated - so when the Hero 5 is delivered, get that updated and I'll be ready to fly.
This isn't my first drone, got pretty good with the tiny (sub $100) one that my wife got me for Christmas a while back - so I'm hoping that if I run into any problems with GPS, I should be able to handle flying it back to me. If not... Well, we'll cross that bridge when we get there.
Just wanted to say hi, and hope to glean some good info from you fine folks!
I'm a retired Marine CH-46E pilot (with over 2,000 hours in fixed wing and rotary wing aircraft) living in Virginia Beach. Getting into the drone flying because my medical is currently denied and I still need to scratch the flying itch... Licensed by FAA as a Commercial Single Engine Land/Helicopter pilot with instrument ratings for both airplane and helicopter. Once I get my medical back, I'm planning on adding the 107 endorsement and also moving on to the Regional Airlines (they're heavily recruiting military helo guys right now). Currently working as a Federal Government Civil Servant, training young Marines in the intricacies of Close Air Support.
Bought a used GoPro Karma on eBay, that appeared to be in pretty good shape - and the guy accepted my offer of $400 for the drone, two batteries, and four sets of blades. Unlike some Karmas on eBay - this one included the gimbal and the grip. It got delivered last night, and it's in really good shape - with the exception of the right rear arm. It's missing the cap at the bottom that covers the LED lights. Couldn't find it in the package at all, so I'm assuming it wasn't damaged in shipping. Ordered a new arm to replace it. Haven't been able to check the operation of the drone/gimbal - my Hero 5 should ship today. Was able to get everything powered up and updated - so when the Hero 5 is delivered, get that updated and I'll be ready to fly.
This isn't my first drone, got pretty good with the tiny (sub $100) one that my wife got me for Christmas a while back - so I'm hoping that if I run into any problems with GPS, I should be able to handle flying it back to me. If not... Well, we'll cross that bridge when we get there.
Just wanted to say hi, and hope to glean some good info from you fine folks!