I am planning a short trip to Norway in early June and as I am going only for 3 days I want to make the most of it while staying out of trouble. One of my strong motivations to go is that I have read Norway has more tolerant rules for drone flying. And the scenery makes me drool, of course. Hopefully my Mini 3 Pro will arrive before I go but if not I will take the Mini 2. This will be the first trip where I leave my mirrorless home and only take the drone.
My plan is to spend a day in Oslo and about 2 days in Bergen. I am flying so won’t have a car, only public transport.
I would appreciate any advice on:
good spots for flying and photography
anything to avoid or watch out for
any general tips for Norway
Although, I am a very new drone pilot (see my thread on hitting a tree with my first flight) recently I tasted blood in Isle of Skye and now I am completely hooked.
Been reading the posts here as well and you guys have a lot of good stuff to share. I really dig the vibe of this club and keep coming back to read more. Plus the dronescene is just fantastic.
If you’re after some scenery, maybe consider the train from Oslo to Bergen and schedule in a stop at Flåm. The Flåm railway (Flåmsbana) is really special if you like that sort of thing. If the timing works, you could even (and this one is less drone, more the experience) get the ferry from Flåm to Bergen for some amazing scenery.
I’d go with the IAA (Ireland). For the open Cat its 60 Euros for Proof of online trg (jsame test as the CAA exam and can take as many times as you like. 75% pass rate but any you get wrong you hav to go back and change your ans till they are all correct) and Operator registration (30 Euro each) . You have to create an account, which will give you a mySRS login. EU register’s the pilot not the drone and when you get your Op Reg Code it comes with a QR code. I printed it and displayed it on my mini 2 battery cover. Then your good to go. I did have to put my Liability Policy number somewhere in the application but cant remember which part.
I should have asked advice here first. I thought I was being clever by booking my flight from London to Bergen with a 11 hour layover in Oslo. I didn’t know the train system in Norway was that good.
Their site was in English also which is what I used. I am just wondering if that registration will be enough or I need to do again.
And why Ireland instead of registering in Norway itself? Is it cheaper?
If its in english then go for it. I could find an english translation for the Italian ENAC (Italian authority) but the circular referred to in its chapters for drones said its only in Italian and it was 34 pages long! I understand the EU regulations are the same across all of its members. No idea of the cost across member states but if the website is in english it should tell you; it did for the IAA. Technically, the guidance says you should take the test in the 1st member state you visit and intend to fly, but that would be too late for me. This registration would cover you for any other EU country thereon.
Good luck
Thanks a lot. I will try and check from the Norway aviation site if they are accepting the French registration number, if that’s the right one I have done.
Was just reading the Ireland authority’s FAQ about registering. If you register in Ireland and wish to operate your drone in another EU state you can do so but you need to apply for cross border operations first.
Registered on the Norway aviation site, paid the fee. Now I can fly the sub-250g drones. Can’t take their online training or test as it’s all in video format in Norwegian. I will check later if this registration works in other countries, probably won’t as Norway is not part of the EU.
I went to school in Oslo for a few years, it’s a beautiful part of the world.
I lived near Sandvika, about 30 minutes south of Oslo, on an island called Nesøya in the fjord. Any part of that area of the fjord is stunning. About 20 minutes west of Oslo are the Kolsås mountains, and a local ski resort. The views from up there are amazing. If you are travelling west across to Bergen, you’ll pass over the Gaustablikk mountains, which are massive at 1250m. I’d defo film those if I had the opportunity. Dave @OzoneVibe can also vouch for them
Norway is expensive. Very expensive. I recall when I went back there to visit in 2002(?), it was 80 Kroner for a pint, which worked out to be £8 or thereabouts. In the 80’s, a chocolate bar was 5 Kroner, which is 50p, whereas in the UK at the time it was about 15p. Not sure what is like today, but it isn’t going to any cheaper.
The country is very clean and tidy, and the people are nice. It is a lovely country, one that I would retire to in an instant. Similar to Wales (where I’m from), the countryside is almost empty - which makes is even more beautiful.
Some lingo - spelt phonetically.
Hi - Hi
Yai - I
Do - You
Ya - Yes
Nei - No
Tak - Thanks
Toosan Tak - Thousand thanks
Harda - How’s it going
Va kosta dey - How much is that
Stor url tak - Large beer please
Vor ar - Where is
Vor lang - How far
Yai vet ikka - I don’t know
Yai can ikka forstor dai - I cannot understand you
Can do forstor mei - Can you understand me
Yai can ikka spiller yemsel - I cannot play hide and seek
I have more - but it is probably not the place for it
This is going in my Google notes so I can refer to it later as well. Thank you so much for all the useful info. I will try and get a window seat in the flight from Oslo. If it’s not delayed, it will be sunset time over the mountains. Best I can do in this trip is to shoot it from the plane with my mobile camera.
The expensive thing worries me, glad, I am there only 3 days.
Hi, I am relatively new to GADC and wanted some advice re taking and flying my Mini 3 pro in Norway (Lofoten islands) later in February.
I have registered with the Flydrone.no but as a flyer of a sub 250g drone don’t believe I need to take any exam. Will be getting suitable insurance which is a requirement there.
I have seen comments re needing to register with the Norwegian national security authority as flying a drone with a camera in Norway.
Has anyone done this ? Any advice or tips regarding this?
I think this is the only thing outstanding but if anyone aware of anything else please let me know.
Finally does anyone have any advice re flying in the Lofoten islands.
