By Robert Luckock
During the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta activities at Port de Plaisance, the flying of drones is prohibited over the party areas. This creates a problem for the official TV and media partners as these overhead shots give a great view of the parties.
On Air Media got around this problem by using point-to-point Fly Line cable cams which the Regatta crowd will notice. The cable cam rides high above the crowd along cables attached to anchor points on stage and party areas. It’s a similar system to what is used to film major sport events in stadiums.
“On Air Media never uses drones over crowds as this is very dangerous,” comments On Air Media CEO Anton van de Koppel. “The cameras zip up and down on special marine cables which are made of Mylar, a material commonly used in the marine industry which is stronger than steel.
“This is the first time we are using this system. The cable cam was developed last December and tested only indoors at our facility in the Netherlands. Illegal drone operators planning to fly over the party area anyway are hereby informed that our wires will be installed all week and any drone will crash if it hits the wires.”
On Air Media has the only available government-issued license to operate drones over the Regatta race courses.
