A multirotor drone crashed on live TV behind skier Marcel Hirscher in a slalom event on Tuesday. It shattered on the icy slope a few seconds after the Olympic silver medalist started his second run.
International Federal Ski Director Markus Waldner told the Associated Press on Wednesday drones will be prohibited “as long as I am responsible … because they are a bad thing for safety.”
“It was huge luck that Marcel was not hurt,” Waldner said. “I am very angry.”
The company responsible for the drone, sports marketing agency Infront, said its initial investigation “indicates a malfunction of the drone.”
I have been flying drones for over three years and have a couple drones very similar to that drone that crashed in the video. I agree with the ban as there needs to be more safety precautions and safe fly zones anytime you fly at an event or where there is risk to public safety. I have always stressed the importance of safety first. So many inexperienced and some experienced operators fail to recognize how easy it is for a drone to fail without notice and come crashing to the ground. Always do a safety audit before each flight, do not fly over people and always have a safe fly zone and plan out each flight.
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