Flying a drone near airports in Canada

What the rules say

Each line is resolved from published facts of Canada. "Not resolved" means the corpus does not answer it in a machine-checkable way — never that the law is silent.

• Distance restriction1852 mConditional
• Aerodrome permissionConditional
• Controlled airspace permissionConditional
• Protected facilitiesConditional
• Digital authorisationConditional
• Altitude relationshipConditional
• ExceptionsConditional

What changes the answer

• location

  Distance below 1 nm

• location

  Distance below 3 nm

• location

  Radius below 1 nm

• location

  Radius below 1.9 km

• location

  Radius below 3 nm

• location

  Radius below 5 nm

The rules behind this answer

• Binding lawNational rule

  Accessibility of Controlled Airspace Authorization

  A pilot must ensure that the controlled airspace authorization is easily accessible during the operation.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  Altitude Exception in Controlled Airspace

  A pilot may operate a remotely piloted aircraft in controlled airspace at an altitude above the limits specified in section 901.25 if authorized by the air traffic services provider.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  Applicability of Division II (Basic Operations)

  Division II applies to the operation of small remotely piloted aircraft conducting VLOS operations in uncontrolled airspace at a horizontal distance of not less than 100 feet (30 m) from any person not involved in the operation.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  Applicability to Medium RPA VLOS in Controlled Airspace

  This Division applies to the operation of a medium remotely piloted aircraft to conduct a VLOS operation in controlled airspace.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  Applicability to Medium RPA VLOS in Uncontrolled Airspace (100 to 500 feet from People)

  This Division applies to the operation of a medium remotely piloted aircraft to conduct a VLOS operation in uncontrolled airspace and at a distance of less than 500 feet (152.4 m) but not less than 100 feet (30 m), measured horizontally, from any person not involved in the operation.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  Applicability to Medium RPA VLOS in Uncontrolled Airspace (Far from People)

  This Division applies to the operation of a medium remotely piloted aircraft to conduct a VLOS operation in uncontrolled airspace and at a distance of 500 feet (152.4 m) or more, measured horizontally, from any person not involved in the operation.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  Applicability to Small RPA EVLOS in Uncontrolled Airspace

  This Division applies to the operation of a small remotely piloted aircraft to conduct an extended VLOS (EVLOS) operation in uncontrolled airspace.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  Applicability to Small RPA VLOS in Controlled Airspace

  This Division applies to the operation of a small remotely piloted aircraft to conduct a VLOS operation in controlled airspace.

  Open the requirementOfficial source

Official sources

• Canadian Aviation Regulations (SOR/96-433), Part IX - Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems — Transport Canada Civil AviationOpen

Other drone rules in Canada

• Do I need to register my drone in Canada?Registration in Canada depends on the aircraft and the operation: it applies once the published conditions below are met, each cited to the rule that sets it.
• What is the maximum drone altitude in Canada?Drone flights in Canada are held to a published general height limit of 30.48 m AGL. The limit is not absolute: the published conditions that change it are cited below.
• Is BVLOS drone flight allowed in Canada?BVLOS in Canada runs through a defined authorisation pathway rather than an open permission: the published conditions below set out what that pathway requires.
• When does a drone operation need authorisation in Canada?Whether an operation in Canada needs prior authorisation depends on the operational category, risk class or location: the published triggers below decide it.
• What training do I need to fly a drone in Canada?Remote pilot competency in Canada is triggered by the operation and by a published mass threshold of 0.25 kg. Which training, examination or proof of competency applies is set by the conditions below.

All drone laws in Canada