Flying in Congested Locations

With so many people unsure of the CAA legislation,surrounding flying in congested areas, it’s not a surprise that there is often so much public debate online.

The reality is that, in order to fly over a congested area, you need to have a Permission for Commercial Operation from the Civil Aviation Authority.

The image above is a great example of one of those pictures that often results in a lot of debate about it’s legality. Well, this picture was taken by Drone Scotland as part of a larger assignment and it was taken in full accordance with the law.

How did we do it? The simple answer is that we received the brief and we followed our detailed operations manual. By assessing both the site and the required flight, we were able to reach the conclusion that the flight could be conducted both safely and legally.

What did we need? Well, we needed to mitigate all the risks that our assessments highlighted. We had limited space to fly and were surrounded by busy roads including both vehicles and pedestrians.

What risks did we mitigate? Firstly, we needed written permission from the landowner. Once received, we ensured that we had a secured site with no unnecessary personnel in our area of operation. The weather had to be just right and we planned our day so that it was overcast, calm and with no risk of rain. Finally, we coordinated our flight with Glasgow and Cumbernauld Air Traffic Control as well as Police Scotland and their Glasgow based Emergency Helicopter division.

So what happened next? We coordinated with the site manager and attended the location. We then notified the authorities of our intended start time. The actual flight itself lasted just 20 minutes but we reserved a 1 hour slot thus room to manoeuvre. After landing we again informed the authorities that we had landed.

So job done..right? Well, not quite. We then had to quality check the imagery and then provide a copy to the client. Then, it’s job done and another happy customer.

Need a flight conducted in a congested area? Contact us for a obligation free quote and we can quickly assess the legality and safety of the brief just like the example above.

1 thought on “Flying in Congested Locations

  1. UFO Drone TV Reply

    Fantastic explanation of what goes on behind the scenes – thanks for sharing.

    Drone Scotland is leading the way for safe, leagle drone operatiom and education in our area.

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