I see a lot of questions regarding real aircraft, but I have a question about my drone. Is it appropriate to ask questions about drones and UAVs on the website?
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2$\begingroup$ It's a fine line. Look at the questions with the tag mentioned by quiet flyer and look for the difference between well-received and badly-received questions. We tend not to like questions about product support, controller design, or component shopping. $\endgroup$– Federico ModApr 16, 2020 at 6:29
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$\begingroup$ By the way, while I think it's good to discuss this topic again now in light of the drones SE site (finally) launching, this issue has been discussed here (at least) a couple of times in the past, so those answers may still be useful: Are remote controlled aircraft on-topic? and Are questions about hobby-grade drones on-topic in general? $\endgroup$– reirabApr 20, 2020 at 18:50
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$\begingroup$ This is recently coming up again, with at least one ASE member advocating closure of the questions aviation.stackexchange.com/questions/83112/… and aviation.stackexchange.com/questions/83102/… as being off-topic. See the comments under those questions, if they are still present. $\endgroup$– quiet flyerDec 25, 2020 at 17:00
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2 Answers
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There is a tag for it -- https://aviation.stackexchange.com/questions/tagged/unmanned-aerial-vehicle -- so I would think so. You won't find the site to be a good resource for practical help though. If you have very specific definable questions about aviation regulations this site might be of some use to you though most folks probably aren't familiar with regulations as they pertain to drones.
Anyway I think the basic answer to your question is "yes", but the results might not be what you are hoping for.
Keep in mind too that the site guidelines forbid asking questions about where to procure specific items. ("Where can I buy a size 5 battery for my xyz drone....)
For theoretical questions or questions about how to calculate something, you might get some good results here, but you might also consider the "modelling science" subforum of rc groups dot com; there are some pretty smart people who post there or at least there used to be. Depending on whether it's a multicopter or fixed-wing there might be some other appropriate subforums on the site as well. Plus a traditional forum like that is more suitable for an extended conversation; this site definitely isn't.
But welcome to the site if you do decide to post your question(s) here.
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$\begingroup$ Stay tuned, maybe someone else will give a different answer... $\endgroup$ Apr 7, 2020 at 0:00
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$\begingroup$ I am trying to build my own drone and I want to ask questions about the design and aerodynamics. $\endgroup$ Apr 7, 2020 at 16:36
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1$\begingroup$ Didn't mean to be condescending; again I think the basic answer to your question is "yes" but that's just my one opinion. I'm not sure how meta is supposed to work, maybe people are supposed to indicate they agree by upvoting... you could always just go ahead and ask your question and see what happens. $\endgroup$ Apr 7, 2020 at 16:43
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1$\begingroup$ You might possibly also consider the "modelling science" subforum of rc groups dot com, there are some pretty smart people who post there or at least there used to be. Depending on whether its a multicopter or fixed wing there might be some other appropriate subforums on the site as well but check out "modelling science". Plus a traditional forum like that is more suitable for an extended conversation. $\endgroup$ Apr 7, 2020 at 16:47
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$\begingroup$ As an aside, thanks to new recent regulations, every radio-controlled model airplane in the USA is a UAV in the eyes of the FAA now. Maybe grounds for another question to ASE Meta? $\endgroup$ Apr 7, 2020 at 18:46
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While they're not off-topic here (they are still aircraft after all), there is now a site solely for UAVs/drones, which might be a better fit for some questions
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$\begingroup$ The new Drones.SE site is currently in private beta, and it's likely to open to the public in early May. $\endgroup$ Apr 19, 2020 at 2:08