Advice please re Turkey (2017) / Updated 2019

I am going to Dalyan in Turkey at the end of next week, you know whats coming !!!
Am I ok to take it with me ?
I have been reading so many threads etc and I am totally confused, some say no leave it at home, others are saying no problem go for it, the official stuff is so contradictory about batteries, where it should be placed (hold luggage or hand)
I just cannot make my mind up, the last thing I want is for it to be confiscated…
Can someone shed some light on this PLEASE.

I have jus tfound this in mavic pilots…

I looked at all the posts and also the UK Governement Websites, plus the Turkey drone Registration site and finally I went to the airline desk at the airport - here are my conclusions.

  1. You are all incorrect and giving poor advice.
  2. The battery restrictions ONLY apply to “laptops, tablets and phones over the specified size, and also to devices or battery packs to be used with those items”
  3. Drones are allowed in hand luggage, are allowed on Turkish Airlines and ARE allowed in to Turkey.
  4. The battery for the Mavic is classed as a camera battery and not subject to the new restrictions.
  5. The batteries, being approx 43wh capacity, MUST be carried in hand luggage and NOT in the hold.
  6. The new Turkish drone registration system and legality is ONLY applicable to devices with a take off weight of 5kg or over, making the Mavic exempt.

How do I know all this to be 100% accurate? Because I’ve just returned from Turkey flying from Manchester in the UK, with the Mavic and 3 batteries and had absolutely no issues through any of the security checks. Yes they did request to look at the device and checked the power output of the batteries and said they were all OK.

I’m glad I did my research instead of relying on speculation and now have some great footage from around Antalya to remember my trip with.

Anyone wanting to ask any questions, please feel free. Happy flying and teşekkür ederim!

1 Like

All of that makes perfect sense mate.

I’d carry mine on as hand luggage for sure.

Which airline are you using?

Thomas Cook thier help line is useless…

You’ll be fine mate, take it on as hand luggage.

What sort of case do you use? If it’s one where each battery is in its own compartment then no probs, but if the batteries are bunched in to the same compartment just put some electrical tape and/or those Mavic battery dust caps (on eBay) over the exposed terminals to show you’ve isolated them from coming in to contact with each other / short circuit :+1:

I have only got the DJI case at the moment, I am going to order a back pack style now, I was going to have the batterys discharged to 20% and as you say put the covers on the terminals just to show I have made every effort to make them safe …

My mavic went to greece in my rucksack in the soft fleece bag that you can buy for £10 on the DJI website.

Batteries were at 40% and the terminals had some electrical tape lightly pressed on.

Had my bag checked at Manchester airport and they were fine with how i had everything, the guy actually liked i had the batteries seperate from the drone.

2 Likes

I have decided to go for it sod it, just took out insurance for the drone so if it gets confiscated I am classing it as its flew off and crashed :smirk:

Lol, good call :smiley:

2 Likes

A quick update on my current trip to Turkey with the Mavic…

  1. Went through customs no problems
  2. Spoke to a couple of local police men I came across explained about my concerns with flying in their country ( No problem you are fine Enjoy)…
  3. The local people that have seen it are interested and don’t mind it at all…
    4, Cormorants don’t like Mavic’s

LOL :smiley:

If that’s all you have to worry about on the entire trip, you’ve done bloody well mate!

Thanks for updating us mid-hols.

Enjoy :+1:

Good update, thanks. Can we get a few of their police to come and have a word with ours? :slight_smile:

2 Likes

I have been out this morning and the local fishermen were just amazed when I showed them the live feed it blew them away, as a result I had Turkish tea and some kind of preserved meat with them… happy days

2 Likes

Cor blimey just gone through Turkish customs and they were very strict, they wanted to put the Mavic in the hold of the plane, I refused point blank and informed them that they are incorrect and it can be classed as hand luggage, I read out the official documents about battery voltage and compliance, they still said in the hold so I ask for a manager, he cane and I explained what I had been told and showed him the paperwork, he said you are completely correct and I could keep it with me, they all apologised and we are just boarding the plane together… :+1::grinning::grinning::grinning:

1 Like

Bloody hell!

Fair play for standing your ground mate :+1:

1 Like

Yep I was officially pooing my pants :grinning:
I am a little hot headed at times and my wife kept saying calm down they are going to arrest you F that whats right is right no backing down…
The manager was great he said that they will educate there security about drones because they are becoming very popular, I told him what a great experience I had with the Mavic in Turkey and how not one person objected in fact I tracked a party boat and it went mental when they could see it was following them, the music went up and everyone loved being filmed, BUT guess who mucked up yes ME didnt press record in the heat of the moment I was more bothered about exposure and focus and forgot the most important bit RECORD arrrrrgh.
Now to edit all the go pro and Mavic footage…

2 Likes

We’ve all done it, so many things to think about and then miss the simple thing, sooo annoying when it happens…

What happened when you came home? Did you get it through? More particularly the batteries.
I had to get rid of two powerbanks in the airport at Izmir because they are on the list of things you cannot bring back from the 7 or 8 listed muslim countries of which Turkey is one. No problem taking them out. Its getting them back from countries thst is the problem.

Hi you are correct getting them in is easy but outward was a pain in the butt, I went pre armed with all the relavant documentation and the reg regarding what you can and cannot carry, I presented all this to the Turkish customs guys and it shit them up, so I just stood my ground when they kept saying it not allowed on board then they said its got to go in the hold of the plane I just said no bloody way read the documents and you will see you are wrong, they just got sick of me and let me carry on…

1 Like

I think you were probably lucky! My advice would be to not risk taking it to Turkey or be prepared to sacrifice the batteries. I ended up having to sell my two powerbanks in the airport!
Annoying as we go there twice a year.:persevere: