If I practice flying a drone in a public park not over gardens or using the camera for looking into windows do I need a licence?
1 Answer
Skykam has provided a summary of UK regulations for 2023:
- Drone operators must be at least 12 years old to fly independently
- Drones are not permitted to fly higher than 400 feet (120 meters)
- Operators must maintain a line of sight with their drone at all times
- Permission is required before flying in restricted airspace
- Do not fly your drone within a 5-kilometer radius of airports.
- A minimum distance of 50 meters must be maintained from uninvolved persons (Drones below 250 grams are permitted to fly closer and over people)
- Drones weighing 250 grams or more must be operated at least 150 meters away from parks, industrial areas, residential zones, and other built-up locations.
- If a drone is equipped with a camera, the operator must register for an Operator ID with the CAA.
- Insurance is mandatory for commercial drone use.
- Compliance with these regulations is required during both daytime and nighttime operations.
So...
- If your drone has a camera, then Yes, you will need a flyer ID. This isn't a licence as such, and is free, but does involve a theory test.
- If your drone weighs 250g or more, then you can't use it in a park.
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2Unless the park is empty. Also, in reality most park-goers won't care if someone is using a drone as long as they're not dive-bombing people– RichardApr 10 at 22:35
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1I guess I would care if an inexperienced drone operator lost control of their drone, resulting in the drone falling on my head - so "practicing" your drone flying skills close to park-goers might not be a good idea even if legally allowed. Apr 11 at 5:41
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@Richard No, even if the park is empty, you can't fly a drone less than 150m from it. See point 6 of the CAA guidance. Apr 11 at 6:10