I am completely knew with drones. I just bought a DJI Flip drone (< 250g) and have my OperatorID and FlyerID (training). I hold a Liability Insurance (but no Indemnity to Landowners/Principals - that could allow me to fly on The Flying Field in Richmond park).
I’ve been spending so much time trying to find areas where I can fly the drone around London, but it seems sooooo complicated with all the restrictions. There are also too many different maps showing restricted areas but it’s so difficult to know which one is right or wrong. For example, on Drone Scene, the whole London is not showing red as it is on other maps (i.e. NATS or ukdronemap).
My questions:
Where are the best places I can go to practice drone flying around London (I live in Brick Lane so anything closer to that or I don’t mind travelling 1h-2h away).
What app/website do you guys trust the most to check restrictions (that is user friendly)?
On top of Aviation restrictions, there are the landowners restrictions/bylaws - anything you recommend to easily check when I go somewhere?
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Looking for recommendations of places to fly? Check out our interactive map on Drone Scene and please feel free to add locations of your own too
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We’re a well established club with many knowledgeable members so it’s very likely that any issues you come across will have been discussed here before. Our discussion forum has very powerful search features which should help you find what you need but if you get stuck you can post a new question in the Questions & Answers category.
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Rightly so, the whole of London is not covered by a Flight Restriction Zone
Drone Scene filters out most things that don’t apply to drones, hopefully giving you a clearer view of the relevant airspace.
Try a few searches here on the forum if you have any questions about a specific restriction, most of them will have been discussed here at some point over the last ten years
Obviously, there is the chance that the local situation can have changed since locations were posted (some more than 8 years ago), so proper re-assessment should always be carried out before flying.
But - they are a good starting point, and the more recently they were created the more up-to-date the info.
Hi Manon, my go to place when I need to test a new software update is Wormwood Scrubs Open Space ( Co-ordinates: 51.52245, -0.241849 • what3words: ///blitz.host.things) as they have a flying field there just north of the prison. ( I know, still weirds me out that we have a place to legally fly drones pushing up against a place where it is VERY illegal to fly drones, but hey ho.) You can see the Flight Restriction Zone very clearly on any NOTAM map you care to look at, and indeed I once accidentally flew my DJI Neo into it and my controller immediately told me what I had done, prompting me to hastily reverse course, though I am led to believe this isn’t a guaranteed feature.
I wouldn’t recommend flying there tomorrow though, August bank Holiday as they still have their GPS Jammers active that they have been using to protect Notting Hill Carnival.
Here at Grey arrows we have dronescene which is a fantastic resource showing you not only restriction zones, but spots that other members have flown and recommend in the area as well. That info and more is available for all members, but if you were to take the plunge and sign up for silver or gold membership I believe you get access to more information such as what local councils have bylaws that prevent taking off on their land, etc. Basic rule of thumb is you need permission from the landowner, so on private land that involves an ask, (and possibly a fee) and on public land as long as you have checked to make sure it’s allowed (bylaws, not in a restriction zone etc) you can go ahead as long as you follow the CAA Drone Code.
Thank you so much, this is exactly what I needed!!
I spent the day checking many of the “recommended” places around London from the Drone Scene map/list, using AI to get information on the local councils bylaws. This takes ages to check. So if you’re telling me the silver subscription could help me get this information directly, I might subscribe then!
I saw that South Norwood Country Park might be a good fit too as Croydon Council’s current park byelaws do not contain a specific ban on drones. I might check there as it is way further from the Notting Hill GPS Jammers.
It’s not because people flew to a place that it means they are allowed to fly there
I’m using AI only to check the local councils bylaws as it seems some people here only talk about CAA restricted area and still go to places that actually doesn’t allow you to take off/land because of landowner restrictions
So yes I prefer to check by myself directly on the websites (confirming AI information) than relying on what people say when they only talk about CAA ok-to-fly places. Also things change over time so what someone said in 2024 might not apply today
(see image 2 below)
