A couple of times a week, Clarence Buttram takes his first-person-view drone to a nearby park or field and puts the FPV through some high intensity, high-speed maneuvers. He wears a headset with a video screen that puts him inside the drone.
It tells him his speed, which can reach 60 or 70 miles per hour. The screen gives him an instant view of exactly what the drone sees, so rather than controlling it via line of sight where the operater sees the drone is from the ground, the pilot is virtually onboard.
“You are submerged in the drone like being in the pilot’s seat,” Buttram said. “I have display of speed on the screen in front of me. It’s very quick and immediate.”
Clarence Buttram brings his freestyle racing drone in for a landing Wednesday on an open field in Rossville. “This thing is different from the normal aerial drone because it is designed for speed and aerobatic maneuvers,” Buttram said.Buttram has been flying FPV drones for about three years and bought his current model about three months ago.
“I like it because of not having to be a member of an airfield. You can fly in a backyard or a park, and I like the ease of transportation.”