One downside to being a drone pilot in Halifax is the abundance of restricted zones due to military and airport airspace.
There’s a great resource provided by the National Research Council (NRC) to check flight restrictions. You can zoom in on specific locations and see restrictions on a color-coded map. As quoted from the NRC website: “The map uses color to identify areas that require additional caution, or are prohibited from drone flights. Red areas are prohibited. Yellow areas require additional caution due to other air traffic. Orange areas require permission from Nav Canada, Parks Canada, National Defence, or an airport operator. Tapping any area provides further details in an information window.”
Obtaining permission seems complicated, and McNab’s Island is a bit disappointing for me since the airspace restrictions there are confusing. I suspect some people fly there anyway, but I wouldn’t risk it, especially since I want to post my videos and hefty fines are a possibility.
The website is fantastic, but not as convenient for on-the-go use. Thankfully, there’s now an app on Apple and Google stores that lets you choose your drone model, location, and type of flight to see if it’s permitted. It’s quite handy!
One quirk I’ve found, as seen in the screenshot, is that you need to select the category of operation. Mine defaults to “basic,” often resulting in “not allowed” messages for my drone model. This is because my drone is a micro drone (under 250 grams) and needs the “micro-drone operation” setting. As a user, I feel it should automatically switch to micro-drone if that’s the chosen model. However, I’m new to this, so maybe there’s a reason for it. Perhaps one of my readers can enlighten me!
The category of operations are Micro, Basic and Advanced, and the criteria for each is more long winded than I’d like to get into here, but you can check it out at the linked article.
Look for more website and app reviews soon!
Just got my hands on a drone, and let me tell you, it's awesome (and way trickier than it looks!). I'm here to document my adventures in the sky, share epic aerial photos and videos (hopefully!), and learn alongside all you other drone newbies. We'll explore the coolest accessories, tackle those inevitable challenges (read: crash landings!), and figure out all the pitfalls together. Buckle up for some wobbly flights, stunning scenery, and maybe a few laughs along the way!
