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This page will cover flying toys as well as larger and more serious drones.

Summary

In recent years the availability of lithium batteries with a high power to weight ratio and of cheap control electronics and sensors has made possible both flying toys of various sorts and drones for professional and serious amateur use. Particularly with toys, damaging crashes are common, but other faults may also arise.

Safety

Be sure you know how to fly your device safely. Rotating propeller blades can be very dangerous.

There are strict laws in many territories governing the use of drones and quadcopters, as well as radio controlled model aircraft of all types. See Legal below.

Legal

Legal restrictions on the use of airborne devices such as drones will vary from one country to another.

• In the UK you need a licence if your device is over 250g. See Drones: how to fly them safely and legally.