Frequently asked questions about flying a drone
Search your question and go straight to the answer. Each one states the jurisdiction it applies to and when it was last reviewed.
79 questions
Where and when you can fly
- Where can I fly my drone?Where can I fly my drone?
- Can I fly my drone in a public park?Where can I fly my drone?
- Can I fly in my garden or from my balcony?Where can I fly my drone?
- If my drone weighs under 250 grams, can I fly anywhere?Where can I fly my drone?
- If I cannot fly in the open category, can I not fly at all?Where can I fly my drone?
- Is it enough to check once and note the spot down?Where can I fly my drone?
- Is the category decided by whether I am paid for the flight?Where can I fly my drone?
- Where can I fly a drone in Spain?Where can I fly a drone in Spain?
- Can I fly a drone in Madrid or Barcelona?Where can I fly a drone in Spain?
- How close to a building can I fly?Where can I fly a drone in Spain?
- Do I need to notify anyone to fly in a city?Where can I fly a drone in Spain?
- Can I film from the air anywhere?Where can I fly a drone in Spain?
- Can I fly in a national park or a protected area?Where can I fly a drone in Spain?
- Are the 150 metres of A3 a Spanish rule?Where can I fly a drone in Spain?
- What about a beach or a municipal park?Where can I fly a drone in Spain?
- Where can I fly a drone in Portugal?Where can I fly a drone in Portugal?
- Is my Spanish operator registration valid in Portugal?Where can I fly a drone in Portugal?
- Is the Portuguese ANAC the same as the Brazilian one?Where can I fly a drone in Portugal?
- Can I fly near Lisbon or Faro airport?Where can I fly a drone in Portugal?
- Do I need the aerial survey authorisation for a recreational flight?Where can I fly a drone in Portugal?
- Can I fly in a Portuguese nature park?Where can I fly a drone in Portugal?
- Is the height limit different from the European one?Where can I fly a drone in Portugal?
- Can I fly my drone here and now?Can I fly my drone here and now?
- How far in advance should I check?Can I fly my drone here and now?
- Can I fly at night?Can I fly my drone here and now?
- Is my drone manufacturer's app enough?Can I fly my drone here and now?
- What if the site is right on the edge of a zone?Can I fly my drone here and now?
- Can I keep the check as evidence?Can I fly my drone here and now?
What you and your drone need
- Do I need a licence to fly a drone?Do I need a licence to fly a drone?
- Do I need training if my drone weighs under 250 grams?Do I need a licence to fly a drone?
- How long does the certificate last?Do I need a licence to fly a drone?
- Is my certificate valid in another European Union country?Do I need a licence to fly a drone?
- Do I need insurance?Do I need a licence to fly a drone?
- What if I only fly as a hobby?Do I need a licence to fly a drone?
- Which class is my drone, and why does it matter?Which class is my drone, and why does it matter?
- Can I add a class marking to my old drone?Which class is my drone, and why does it matter?
- Which class is a sub-250 gram drone with a camera?Which class is my drone, and why does it matter?
- What are C5 and C6 for, then?Which class is my drone, and why does it matter?
- Does the class depend on what the scales say?Which class is my drone, and why does it matter?
- Do I need a specific class to work with my drone?Which class is my drone, and why does it matter?
The limits of the flight
- How high can I fly my drone?How high can I fly my drone?
- Is it 120 metres or 400 feet?How high can I fly my drone?
- Can I fly higher than 120 metres?How high can I fly my drone?
- If I fly on a mountain, can I climb 120 metres from the summit?How high can I fly my drone?
- Does height over water count?How high can I fly my drone?
- What if the drone climbs by itself on return to home?How high can I fly my drone?
- Can I fly my drone near an airport?Can I fly my drone near an airport?
- What is the minimum distance to an airport?Can I fly my drone near an airport?
- What if the airport is closed at night?Can I fly my drone near an airport?
- Who exactly do I have to talk to?Can I fly my drone near an airport?
- Can I fly near a hospital helipad?Can I fly my drone near an airport?
- Is my drone manufacturer's app enough?Can I fly my drone near an airport?
The day's conditions
- Is it too windy to fly my drone?Is it too windy to fly my drone?
- How much wind can a normal drone take?Is it too windy to fly my drone?
- Can I fly in light rain?Is it too windy to fly my drone?
- Why does my drone warn of strong wind when there is none on the ground?Is it too windy to fly my drone?
- Does cold really affect the battery?Is it too windy to fly my drone?
- Is a weather app forecast good enough?Is it too windy to fly my drone?
- Do I need mobile coverage to fly my drone?Do I need mobile coverage to fly my drone?
- Can I fly without mobile coverage?Do I need mobile coverage to fly my drone?
- Do planning apps work offline?Do I need mobile coverage to fly my drone?
- Does coverage improve as the drone climbs?Do I need mobile coverage to fly my drone?
- Is my mobile operator's coverage map useful?Do I need mobile coverage to fly my drone?
- How do I know what air traffic is near my flight?How do I know what air traffic is near my flight?
- Does a traffic map tell me whether I can fly?How do I know what air traffic is near my flight?
- Why is the traffic I see thousands of metres up?How do I know what air traffic is near my flight?
- Do manned aircraft detect me?How do I know what air traffic is near my flight?
- What do I do if I hear a helicopter and cannot see it?How do I know what air traffic is near my flight?
Professional operation
- What are the specific category and SORA?What are the specific category and SORA?
- Do I need the specific category to work with my drone?What are the specific category and SORA?
- What is the difference between a declaration and an authorisation?What are the specific category and SORA?
- Can I fly higher than 120 metres in the specific category?What are the specific category and SORA?
- What is a PDRA?What are the specific category and SORA?
- Does a SORA cover several flights?What are the specific category and SORA?
- How do you manage a drone fleet?How do you manage a drone fleet?
- From how many drones is it worth it?How do you manage a drone fleet?
- Is keeping a flight log mandatory?How do you manage a drone fleet?
- Can I control what each person sees?How do you manage a drone fleet?
- Does it work for operations in several countries?How do you manage a drone fleet?
The full guides
For when you are not after one fact but want to understand the whole subject.
Where and when you can fly
The question that brings almost everyone here, and how to answer it for one specific place and time.
- Where can I fly my drone?It depends on which category you fly in, and there are three. In the open category you may fly wherever no geographical zone restricts it, within sight and below 120 metres above the ground. In the specific category, where higher-risk operations land, many of those doors open with a declaration or an operational authorisation, including flight beyond visual line of sight; and under an operational authorisation the vertical limit also stops being 120 metres. And the certified category is another league. Something not fitting the open category does not mean it cannot be done: it means it is done another way.Read the answer
- Where can I fly a drone in Spain?Spain applies the European framework and, on top of it, Royal Decree 517/2024, which is what really complicates urban flying. Its articles 38 to 42 set out security zones, essential infrastructure, distances to buildings, aerodromes and controlled airspace, and article 43 the procedure for coordinating with whoever manages them. And there is a figure of its own that catches out anyone with a camera: the zone restricted for photographic flight, where flying is allowed but capturing imagery requires authorisation from the Ministry of Defence.Read the answer
- Where can I fly a drone in Portugal?Portugal applies the same European framework, with operator registration held with the Portuguese ANAC, plus three particularities worth knowing before you cross the border. Around the international airports there are rings that do not forbid but cap the height, at 30, 60 and 80 metres depending on the ring. The environmental authority changes depending on whether you are on the mainland, in Madeira or in the Azores. And capturing imagery from the air can require an aerial survey authorisation from the Autoridade Aeronáutica Nacional, which is a separate file from the flight.Read the answer
- Can I fly my drone here and now?A specific flight is feasible when six checks pass at once: no geographical zone prevents it at that point, the airspace allows it at that height, no temporary notice is in force, your aircraft and category permit those distances and that ceiling, the weather cooperates, and there is daylight or the equipment a night flight requires. One failure is enough for the answer to be no.Read the answer
What you and your drone need
Registration, training and class marking: what is asked of you before take-off, regardless of the place.
- Do I need a licence to fly a drone?There is no «drone licence» as such, but there is a set of requirements almost everyone has to meet: registering as a UAS operator, putting your operator number on the aircraft and evidencing competency as a pilot. In the open category that training is an online course and exam from your aviation authority. In the specific category there are additional steps depending on the scenario.Read the answer
- Which class is my drone, and why does it matter?The class marking is a label (C0 to C6) that the manufacturer puts on the drone and its box, and it is what decides which subcategory you may fly in and how close you may get to people. C0 to C4 are the open category classes; C5 and C6 exist for the standard scenarios of the specific category. If your drone predates this system and carries no label, it is not banned: it is governed by its mass, under stricter transitional rules.Read the answer
The limits of the flight
Height, distances and restricted environments, with the detail that actually changes the outcome.
- How high can I fly my drone?The 120 metre ceiling above the closest point of the surface of the earth applies in the open category and in the standard scenarios too, and there are two traps in that. The first is that it is not 120 metres above the spot where you took off, which is what your altimeter measures. The second is that this ceiling is not universal: only under an operational authorisation does the vertical limit become whatever your approved ConOps states. Downwards, on the other hand, any geographical zone can lower it.Read the answer
- Can I fly my drone near an airport?Near an airport or an aerodrome there is almost always a zone restricting flight, but there is no single distance: each facility publishes its own zone, with its own shape and the height at which it applies. And in many cases it is not a ban but a condition. What almost nobody distinguishes is who you coordinate with: an aerodrome security zone is discussed with its manager, and controlled airspace with the air traffic service provider and, where applicable, with control.Read the answer
The day's conditions
Weather, network coverage and air traffic: what can stop today a flight that was feasible yesterday.
- Is it too windy to fly my drone?The figure that decides is not the mean wind but the gust, and not the one on the ground but the one at the height you will fly, which is almost always stronger. As a practical rule, do not go out if the forecast gust approaches the wind limit your manufacturer declares, because that limit describes what the aircraft withstands, not what it can fly with margin.Read the answer
- Do I need mobile coverage to fly my drone?For an ordinary flight, no: the link between controller and drone uses its own radio and does not go through the mobile network. Coverage starts to matter when what you are flying depends on it, which is the case for real time telemetry, video over the network, following an operation from an office and some coordination services that need to be online. In those cases a valley without coverage is not an inconvenience: it is the whole operation.Read the answer
- How do I know what air traffic is near my flight?You can see a good share of traffic in real time through the surveillance signals aircraft broadcast themselves, and it is a very useful layer for knowing whether you are under a busy track. But it has a limit you need to understand before relying on it: not everything that flies broadcasts. Light aircraft, ultralights, balloons, gliders and some helicopters can be there without appearing on any screen.Read the answer
Professional operation
Specific category, SORA and fleet management for those who fly as a business rather than a hobby.
- What are the specific category and SORA?The specific category is where an operation lands when it does not meet every condition of the open one: flying beyond visual line of sight, over people, above the open category ceiling, or with a bigger aircraft. There are three routes to operate there, from least to most work: adopting a standard scenario with an operational declaration, adopting a predefined risk assessment (a PDRA), or applying for an operational authorisation with a full SORA study. SORA is the methodology, not the procedure.Read the answer
- How do you manage a drone fleet?An operator with more than one drone and more than one pilot has to be able to demonstrate four things at any moment: which aircraft it holds and in what condition, who is qualified to fly them, which maintenance and insurance are current, and what was flown, when and where. While that fits in a spreadsheet, it fits; the problem appears when somebody asks about one specific flight from eight months ago.Read the answer
This guide is general information and planning support, not legal advice and not a flight authorisation. Regulations change and every country adds its own conditions. Before taking off, always check the official sources for your jurisdiction and current aeronautical information. The remote pilot in command is solely responsible for the flight.