"Drone for the Holidays" -- Drone safety tips

Safety event planned for drone safety tips as drone popularity soars... ELYRIA, Ohio - After Santa's reindeer head back home, millions of other flying objects will take to the sky Christmas weekend. 250 million remote-controlled drones of all sizes are expected to be under the Christmas tree this year. "Drones are expected to be the number one gift this holiday season," said Matt Mishak, owner of Dronewerx in Elyria. That means millions of first-time drone users eager to fly Christmas weekend. "Drones are a lot of fun, but they can be dangerous. They're essentially flying lawn mowers that use advanced electronics," Mishak said. Mishak is the Director of the Northern Ohio Unmanned Aircraft Systems Association, a group holding an event at Burke Lakefront Airport to go over the dos, don'ts and FAA safety rules involving drones. Mishak said the number-one mistake is rushing: not waiting for the drone calibration light to turn green, signaling the drone will return to home base. "They don't give it enough time to calibrate; these things work on GPS so they know where they are, but if they make that mistake, their drone could fly away and not come back and who knows where it's going to land," Mishak said. Or crash or have a near miss with a low flying aircraft, which there have been reports of in Northeast Ohio and across the country making training that much more important. "People should take the time to learn how to operate their investment so they fly safely and not hurt other people or property," Mishak said. Mishak advises people to join a remote control club,because you'll not only get training, but you also get insurance. "Drone for the Holidays" is a free event and will be held at Burke Lakefront Airport Saturday Jan. 3 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The event will be held in the main terminal.