Large Model Association Forum

Paid a visit to my local Maplin store recently and noticed a large poster explaining the rules on flying quads and model aircraft bought as 'toys'. I'm just wondering how many people will really take any notice ?????

I'm sure the staff will know nothing of the rules, etc

It is however better than nothing, and more people will read a big sign than so sign at all.

Its a start. Education is the key. I see an incident where some kid was flying a drone or small heli of some kind lost control and it hit a small child (causing a small bruise...) and the parents were going to sue Maplins. If that sort of thing starts then they will think twice about selling them. As for the child, there is nothing wrong with it at all. The blame and sue mentality these days is crazy.

There was an item on our area news a few months ago about a small quad being flown in someones garden, the unprotected blades caught a small child in the face and seriously cut one eye. The damaged eye could not be repaired so that child will spend the rest of its life blind in one eye. Nothing was mentioned about litigation or rules on flying............

Who supplied the poster, Maplin head office I presume ?

I was in a local model shop back at xmas and they were selling one of those pusher foamys to a newbie, no mention of BMFA and insurance I mentioned BMFA insurance and was told by the shopkeeper that their insurance was only valid if you obeyed their rules, at that point I shut up rather than geting into a discussion about how it is the CAA that make the law rather than the BMFA making rules.

Irresponsible shop keeper, he should know better. Maplin's has been selling drones ever since they hit the market, I am sure they never passed on the information to there customers before the poster was put up, in fact I doubt they even knew any rules applied to flying them. After all profit is profit.

Before Xmas I had a row with the manager of the "Menkind" shop in Norhampton, as he was flying a quad in the shop over the customers, I informed him of the CAA/BMFA Drone code but he said it didn't apply as he had a letter from his head office that said it was OK to fly them in the shop !! Trouble with his actions, the general public buying one from the shop will assume it's OK to fly it absolutely anywhere with no problem