Back to: Micro Drones

Flying drones is a fun hobby, however, for anyone who is new to the hobby it can be confusing to figure out where you are allowed to fly.

The rules depend not only on the weight of your drone and the license that you have, but also on your location and applicable federal, provincial and municipal rules. There is a very good article that breaks down the rules around where you can fly Micro Drones in Canada.

Transport Canada breaks down the different categories and I won’t repeat them here. My focus is based on the following conditions:

When I was new to the hobby, I had trouble finding out all the places in Alberta where I was legally allowed to fly my Micro Drone. In order to bring all that information together in one place, I created a map, which can be found below. A direct link to the map is as follows: https://koenaerts.ca/abmicrodrone/

The map is a combination of geo-spatial data that is made publicly available by the Alberta government as well as several municipalities. In addition, the data is based on a best-effort cross-reference with regulations that outline the specifics around flying drones in the respective area on the map. Usually when drones are mentioned in any bylaws, it is within a restrictive context. By selecting the zone or marker on the map you can see links to the relevant drone and data license information.

Unfortunately, the license of the federal data does not allow it to be re-distributed and therefore it has been excluded from the map. You will need to consult that map first and make sure you select the “MICRO” option. If it does not restrict Micro Drone use in your location, then you can use the map below to see if there are any additional local rules that may still restrict Micro Drone use. Just because federal regulations do not restrict drone use in an area, there could still be local restrictive regulations in place. In the case of Alberta, that includes all Provincial Parks, as well as some Public Municipal Properties, among others. If it appears that no further restrictions are in place according to the map, it does not automatically mean that you are allowed to fly your drone there. It could also mean that the map may simply not include relevant information for that area, or that the area is private land. If you happen to have more information about a specific place that you would like to see added to the map, please let me know in the comments below.

Please note that it is your own responsibility to make sure that you are in compliance with the proper applicable regulations. None of the information on this site is in any way “official” or legally binding; the map is merely a collection of scattered and publicly available references that is brought together into 1 place for convenience. Be a responsible drone operator and don’t do stupid things.

Back to: Micro Drones

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