In June, the National Park Service , following an initial ban in Yosemite. Despite such restrictions, there are still those who cannot resist the urge to send their unmanned aircraft into national park airspace, whether to get that once-in-a-lifetime shot of the kind of natural beauty that haunts their dreams—or just to be a jerk.
Decide for yourself which category fits the visitor to ɳ into the last Saturday. Hot spring buffs will know that the Grand Prismatic is the largest hot spring in the United States and the third largest in the world.
Park spokesperson Al Nash addressed concerns that the downed aircraft, which sank into the 370-foot-wide and 121-foot-deep “boiling lake,” could potentially damage the famous natural landmark.
“What we have to determine is whether the presence of this radio-controlled recreational aircraft poses a threat to that unique resource,” Nash said.
“We are trying to determine if we can locate it, and if we locate it, if we’ll be able to remove it. Our concern is about any potential impacts to the iconic Yellowstone thermal feature.”
The tourist who crashed his drone allegedly approached a park employee about the possibility of getting his aircraft back. The man was let go without a citation, and the park employee initially didn’t report the incident.
“I don’t think the [park employee] who they spoke with realized that drones couldn’t be flown in the park or the implications of what they were being told,” Amy Bartlett, spokesperson for Yellowstone National Park, .