EUROPEAN BASIC RULES FOR DRONE FLYING

WHAT ARE THE RULES IN EUROPE

BASIC RULES

In 2021, the rules for flying your drone in Europe changed. New drone legislation and an EASA drone certificate indicate your obligations. It's easy to comply with drone laws in your home country, but it's different when you travel abroad.

GENERAL RULES FOR THE DRONE PILOT

  • You are at least 16 years old; if you are under 16, you can fly with a supervisor (this could be one of your parents). The supervisor is a pilot with a flying license. The supervisor always has the drone in sight and is in contact with the pilot.
  • You always have your pilot licence with you when flying your drone.
  • Have you checked where you're allowed to fly? For the Netherlands, that's the website GoDrone . Check the respective country for a zoning website.
  • You have not consumed alcohol or drugs.
  • Do not fly near emergency services such as an air ambulance or police helicopter.
  • Land your drone immediately if other air traffic is approaching.
  • You respect others' privacy. You only photograph or film someone if they have given permission to be photographed or filmed.

Want to know more? Then check the website of the Dutch government: https://www.rijksoverheid.nl/onderwerpen/drone 

Drones come in various shapes and sizes. They are used in different places and for all kinds of purposes.

For every flight, you adhere to the general rules for the pilot.

Additionally, there are three categories your flight may fall into. The open , specific or the certified category. Which rules apply depends on the risk of the flight. Since 2021, there have been three different categories in the European Union.

To be allowed to fly in European airspace, you must possess the correct certificates and licences. Your drone must also be properly certified. This certification also determines where and how you may fly your drone.

WHICH DRONE LICENCE DO I NEED?

If you are going to fly with your drone and it weighs less than 250 grams, you do not need a certificate or an operator number. Examples include the DJI Mini 3 and the DJI Mini 3 Pro these lightweight drones are 249 grams and you can fly them without a certificate or permit.

If you are going to fly with your drone weighing 250 grams or more, you must have at least the A1/A3 certificate. You also need an operator number from the RDW. https://www.rdw.nl/particulier/voertuigen/drone/het-vliegbewijs-en-het-exploitantnummer-van-een-drone/aanvragen   

If you fly your drones professionally, it is definitely recommended to obtain at least your A1/A3 certificate and apply for an operator number. Whatever weight you use.

If you have an operator number, you must attach it to the drone using a fire plate or label. If you want to fly drones with the C5 or C6 label, you fall into the specific category and need a separate permit. You will then fly a standard scenario STS-01 (VLOS = Visual line of sight) or STS-02 (BVLOS = Beyond visual line of sight), and you will need a separate certification and permit for this, which will be registered with your operator number.

OPEN CATEGORY

LOW-RISK FLIGHTS

  • The drone weighs a maximum of 25 kg (at take-off)
  • You fly up to a maximum height of 120 metres
  • You do not transport dangerous goods
  • You do not drop anything from the drone
  • You always have the drone in sight. This is called visual line of sight (VLOS)
     

Does your flight not meet one or more of these requirements? Then the drone flight is no longer a low-risk flight.

To fly in the open category, you need the correct pilot licence. This depends on your drone's CE label or its take-off weight if your drone doesn't have a CE label yet.

 

SPECIFIC CATEGORY

MEDIUM-RISK FLIGHTS

Your drone flight is an average risk flight if:

  • Flying over crowds of people is allowed
  • Flights near aviation sites are permitted
  • drones weighing over 25 kg are allowed to be flown
  • flying higher than 120 metres is allowed
  • drones are allowed to drop something, for example, spraying crops
  • you may fly outside of direct sight. This is called beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS)
  • You transport people with the drone.
  • You are transporting dangerous substances that pose a risk to people or the environment.
     

If your flight does not meet this, it is no longer an average-risk flight.

For flying in the specific category, in addition to an A1/A3 or A2 flight certificate, you also need a permit that will be added to your operator number.

Your drone meets the following requirements.

  • The drone has a size of 3 metres or more and is designed to fly over people.
  • The drone is designed for transporting people.
  • The drone is designed for transporting dangerous goods and must be sturdy enough to limit the risk to others in the event of an accident.

The ILT determines in the Netherlands whether a flight falls into the specific category.

CERTIFIED CATEGORY

HIGH-RISK FLIGHTS

For flights in the certified category, you can think of flights by the military with extreme BVLOS. Flights such as those with the Reaper drones by the military, which are controlled from the other side of the world.

The ILT determines if your flight falls into the certified category. However, the rules for this category are not yet clear and are still being made by EASA. Therefore, it is not yet possible to fly in this category.

Cx LABELS AND WEIGHT CLASSES

SUBCATEGORY A1

DRONES UP TO 249GRAMS

For drones weighing less than 250 grams at take-off, the general rules apply during flight, but the pilot only needs to register with the RDW if the drone has a camera. And does not need to obtain a flight permit.

TOY DRONES UP TO 249 GRAMS

For toy drones weighing less than 250 grams at take-off, the general rules apply during flight. In addition, the following rules apply.

  • There is no minimum age for flying the toy drone, you can fly without a supervisor.
  • You do not need to register with the RDW and you do not need an operator's permit.
  • You do not need to have a flyer ID.

DRONES UP TO A MAXIMUM OF 500 GRAMS

For drones weighing a maximum of 500 grams at take-off, the general rules for low-risk flights apply. The general rules apply to the pilot before and during the flight. Additionally, the pilot must not fly over people.

SUBCATEGORIE A2

DRONES UP TO A MAXIMUM OF 2KG

Do you want to fly closer to people and is your drone (upon takeoff) lighter than 2 kg? Then your flight falls under subcategory A2

For flights in subcategory A2, the general rules apply before and during the flight. Additionally, the pilot must have a certificate of competency and maintain a horizontal distance of at least 50 metres from people.

In subcategory A2 you are allowed to fly with a

SUBCATEGORIE A3

DRONES UP TO A MAXIMUM OF 25KG

Is your drone (at take-off) a maximum of 25kg? Then your drone falls into subcategory A3. For drones up to a maximum of 25kg, the general rules for low-risk flights apply. For the pilot, the general rules apply before and during the flight. In addition, the pilot only flies in areas where there are no people, and the pilot maintains a minimum distance of 150 metres from residential, commercial, industrial, and recreational zones.

As soon as all drones are sold with a CE label, the weight classes will disappear because every drone sold will have the correct certification mark.

Cx LABELS

From 1 January 2024, no more drones can be sold without a Cx label. The Cx Label determines which class the drone falls into and which licence you can use to fly the drone.

The old weight-based system will slowly disappear as drones leave the shops and the airspace.

New drones can be provided with a Cx label via a firmware update so that they fall into a specific class.

C0 LABEL

For drones with the C0 label, the general rules for the pilot apply. You only need to register the drone with the RDW if it has a camera.

You do not need a flyer ID

C1 LABEL

For flying drones with a C1 label, the general rules for the pilot apply. The drone has a maximum take-off weight of 900 grams.

Normally you fly in the open category with drone licence subcategory A1/A3; if you want to fly closer to people, drone licence subcategory A2 is required.

DRONES

C2 LABEL

For flying drones with a C2 label, the general rules for the pilot apply. The drone has a maximum take-off weight of 4kg.

DRONES

C3 LABEL

For flying drones with a C1 label, the general rules for the pilot apply. The drone has a maximum take-off weight of 25kg.

DRONES

C4 LABEL

For flying drones with a C1 label, the general rules for the pilot apply. The drone has a maximum take-off weight of 25kg.

DRONES

C5 LABEL

For flying drones with a C5 label, the general rules for the pilot apply. Not much is known yet about drones with the C5 label. When more information becomes available, I will update it here.

 

DRONES

C6 LABEL

For flying drones with a C6 label, the general rules for the pilot apply. Not much is known yet about drones with the C6 label. When more information becomes available, I will update it here.

 

DRONES

At the moment, there are no drones with the C6 Label yet.

FLYING YOUR DRONE ABROAD

The A1/A3 and A2 certificates are valid throughout EASA airspace. Want to know the rules in the country where you want to fly? Then check out Flying a drone abroad.