Maximum drone altitude in European Union / EASA
What is the maximum drone altitude in European Union / EASA?
Drone flights in European Union / EASA are held to a published general height limit of 120 m above_nearest_obstacle. The limit is not absolute: the published conditions that change it are cited below.
- General height limit
- 120 m
- Reference datum
- above_nearest_obstacle
The general height limit that applies to drone flights, and what changes it.
This is the shared European Union / EASA framework rule. Member States apply it and may add national requirements, so check the national page for the country you fly in.
What the rules say
Each line is resolved from published facts of European Union / EASA. "Not resolved" means the corpus does not answer it in a machine-checkable way — never that the law is silent.
- General height limit120 mConditional
- Reference datumabove_nearest_obstacleYes
- Category-specific limitsConditional
- Aerodrome-related limitConditional
- Structure exceptionConditional
- Authorised exceedanceConditional
- Conditional limitsConditional
- ExceptionsConditional
What changes the answer
The published rules distinguish the open category of operation.
- altitude
Flight altitude at or below 120 m
- altitude
Flight altitude below 120 m
- altitude
Flight altitude at or below 15 m
- altitude
Obstacle height above 105 m
The rules behind this answer
- Binding lawNational rule
Article 4 - section overview
This section establishes the classification requirements for UAS operations in the 'open' category, defining limits on aircraft class, maximum take-off mass, operational distance from people, visual line of sight, maximum altitude, and cargo restrictions, as well as dividing the category into three sub-categories.
- Binding lawNational rule
Class C0 Maximum Attainable Height Limit
A class C0 UAS must have its maximum attainable height above the take-off point limited to 120 m.
- Binding lawNational rule
Compliance with Open Category Operational Limitations
UAS operations in the 'open' category must comply with the operational limitations set out in Part A of the Annex.
- Binding lawNational rule
Criteria for Determining Unmitigated Ground and Air Risks
The risk identification must determine the unmitigated ground risk and unmitigated air risk based on specified operational, environmental, and airspace criteria.
- Binding lawNational rule
Height Exception for Unmanned Sailplanes
Unmanned sailplanes with an MTOM of less than 10 kg may be flown at a distance in excess of 120 metres from the closest point of the surface of the earth, provided they do not exceed 120 metres above the remote pilot at any time.
- Binding lawNational rule
Height Exception Near Tall Artificial Obstacles
The maximum height of the UAS operation may be increased up to 15 metres above the height of an artificial obstacle taller than 105 metres when flying within a horizontal distance of 50 metres from it, at the request of the entity responsible for the obstacle.
- Binding lawNational rule
Maximum Altitude in Open Category
The unmanned aircraft must be maintained within 120 meters from the closest point of the surface of the earth.
Official sources
- EASA Easy Access Rules for U-space (Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/664), May 2024 — European Union Aviation Safety AgencyOpen
- Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/945 — European Union Aviation Safety AgencyOpen
- Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/947 — European Union Aviation Safety AgencyOpen
Other drone rules in European Union / EASA
- Do I need to register my drone in European Union / EASA?Registration in European Union / EASA is governed by a published mass threshold of 0.25 kg, alongside the further conditions cited below. Whether it applies to a given flight depends on those conditions, each cited to its rule.
- Do I need Remote ID in European Union / EASA?Remote identification in European Union / EASA is framed by a published mass threshold of 25 kg, together with the aircraft and operation conditions cited below. Whether a given flight must carry or broadcast an electronic identity depends on those conditions.
- When does a drone operation need authorisation in European Union / EASA?Whether an operation in European Union / EASA 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 European Union / EASA?Remote pilot competency in European Union / EASA scales with the operation: which training, examination or proof of competency applies is set by the published conditions below.
- Do I need drone insurance in European Union / EASA?Drone insurance in European Union / EASA is published with a minimum third-party cover of 0.75 million SDR. Whether cover is required for a given flight depends on the published conditions below.
Built around official regulatory sources
- Official sources
- Regulation-level citations
- Coverage and freshness checks
- Location-aware data where available
Built from 36 published facts (22 binding) held for European Union / EASA. Dataset ds_55k3jghy8xqzcekzeepwdmanya · generated 2026-09-02 · sources last verified 2026-08-24.
Ask Drone Assistant about altitude limits in European Union / EASA
This page answers "What is the maximum drone altitude in European Union / EASA?" for the general case. Ask about your own aircraft, weight and location to see which of the 8 rules above actually apply to you.
This page gives general regulatory information. It is not flight clearance, operational authorisation or legal advice, and it does not guarantee that a flight is legal. See sources and methodology and terms.