DBUS2 Drone, Great Family Fun
By Ed DownsAs regular readers of In Flight USA may know, this writer acquired his sUAS Pilot Certificate virtually the same day the certificate became available. While proud of a 60-plus year career as a professional pilot, much of which was involved with flight-test engineering, I surprised myself by adding a “drone” certificate to my collection of pilot ratings. I immediately began teaching drone classes for sUAS certification and continue to be quite active in training folks with Technically Advanced Aircraft (TAA). Given all this flying experience and skill with complex, advanced aircraft, one would think I would be the ideal person to evaluate a drone… think again. This writer readily admits to being a drone dummy.The good folks at Drones by US (www.dronesbyus.com), a young company located in Santa Clara, Calif., thankfully ignored my self-professed ignorance and kindly sent me their latest offering, the DBUS2 personal drone with the open-ended request to “treat it like you would an experimental airplane and let us know what you think.” They did not seem to care that I regularly crash my computer, remain confused by the 842 features of my cell phone (of which, I use seven), or have a reputation for breaking delicate electronics.The Drones by US team had no way of knowing that this report would end up being a nearly three-month ordeal, delayed by nearly 45 days of torrential rains, tornadoes (my ranch is in Oklahoma), floods, and non-stop surface winds of near hurricane strength. These adventures were punctuated with killer high temperatures, magazine deadlines, and an intense training schedule, all requiring great patience by Drones by US. At the end of July, the Tulsa Astronomy Club announced a major public “star party” night in honor of the first moon landing, with this writer planning to join in with both a scope and, finally, the DBUS2 drone. This was a perfect chance to take photos for a national astronomy publication and introduce a large audience to drone flying… by a drone dummy.
