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Man fined for flying drone during Stampede fireworks show

A 24-year-old man has been fined for flying a drone on Calgary Stampede grounds during Tuesday night’s drone and fireworks show.

All aircraft subject to restrictions during 10-day festival

Joey Chini · CBC News ·
Red and gold streaming fireworks can be seen above a silhouette of the Saddledome.
The Stampede fireworks always cap off the evening just around 11 p.m. (Submitted by Stan Fister)

A 24-year-old man has been fined for flying a drone on Calgary Stampede grounds during Tuesday night's drone and fireworks show.

Calgary police say all aircraft are barred from flying within a radius of one nautical mile (1.9 kilometres) from the centre of the festival grounds up to 137 metres above ground level between 5 a.m. and 3 a.m. from July 5 to July 15. 

The Calgary Police Service Remote Pilot Aircraft Systems enforcement team started looking into unauthorized drones flying in and around the Stampede grounds after reports the remote-controlled aircraft was causing "unsafe disruptions and delays to events."

Officers say they located the drone operator just after 11 p.m. on Tuesday night.

It's unclear how much money the 24-year-old was fined, but police say unauthorized drone use could result in up to $3,000 in penalties or jail time.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Joey Chini

Joey is a reporter with CBC Calgary. Originally from Toronto, he has a background in radio production and has worked in newsrooms in both Toronto and Calgary in his career. You can reach him by email at [email protected]

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