Air maps? Is there a good app for Canada ?

[Dizzy1971]

i used my quad for the first time this weekend and someone complained that I was flying in restricted airspace (my back yard!.) anyhooooo.! What app Can I get that shows a reliable no fly map for Canada ? I’m not paying hard currency for it either ! Thanks for any suggestions

 

[pixl]

i used my quad for the first time this weekend and someone complained that I was flying in restricted airspace (my back yard!.) anyhooooo.! What app Can I get that shows a reliable no fly map for Canada ? I’m not paying hard currency for it either ! Thanks for any suggestions

Do you know how to read a sectional? It's way harder than you think.

 

[Dizzy1971]

long have I been familiar with the exactitudes of the English language....but no.. I’m not familiar with your term sectional or it’s relative connection with my question.

 

[pixl]

long have I been familiar with the exactitudes of the English language....but no.. I’m not familiar with your term sectional or it’s relative connection with my question.

A sectional is what a map of airspace is called. You can look them up via NAV Canada.

 

[pixl]

long have I been familiar with the exactitudes of the English language....but no.. I’m not familiar with your term sectional or it’s relative connection with my question.

Sorry, I should have been a little more helpful initially. I was on my phone with spotty reception.

Basically, in Canada, we have quite restrictive rules for flying our UAV's. You can read the laws here:

https://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/civilaviation/opssvs/flying-drone-safely-legally.html#legal

There are supposedly even harsher rules on the way, including the requirement for a lot of liability insurance.

My reference to the sectionals was to show you that knowing the rules and interpreting where you can fly on the official maps is quite difficult.

The National Research Council has put together a map of restricted flying space that is pretty helpful:

UAV Site Selection Tool - National Research Council Canada

Unfortunately, it's not mobile friendly, but it will give you an idea of what you're up against. Also note though, that this map is not from the official body - NavCanada - and therefore doesn't show the smaller private aerodromes that limit our flying options even further.

Where I live when I'm in Canada there are 6 overlapping no-fly zones. I have to drive at least 20km away to fly legally at all. For this reason, I rarely fly here. Instead, I fly while traveling in the USA, Europe and Asia.

I know that this is frustrating news when all you want to do is take a little flight over your house, but that's the current reality.

 

[Dizzy1971]

Thanks for that . I’m familiar with the rules the government has put out,but as you point out,it’s quite difficult to avoid all the restricted areas if you live in any city in Canada.
I’m on the west side of calgary so there are lots of places to fly close to me west of the city,but sadly the green spaces though large,appear to be off limits.
I kind of regret buying the mavic now that our government appears to be poised to curb stomp the hobby here at home.

 

[pixl]

Thanks for that . I’m familiar with the rules the government has put out,but as you point out,it’s quite difficult to avoid all the restricted areas if you live in any city in Canada.
I’m on the west side of calgary so there are lots of places to fly close to me west of the city,but sadly the green spaces though large,appear to be off limits.
I kind of regret buying the mavic now that our government appears to be poised to curb stomp the hobby here at home.

Yup, so true. Owning a drone here is kind of like owning a sailboat in a landlocked city. But the difference is that you would know that there was nowhere to sail your boat based on the lack of water. But with all this airspace surrounding us, it seems natural that we could fly -- even low-level flights. Unfortunately the industry does little to tell us what the facts are at point-of-purchase.

I do encourage you to head down into the USA for some real flying freedom. I was in southern California over the holidays and really got to enjoy the Mavic. I even flew it at max altitude (500m).... extremely verboten here

BTW, I lived in Calgary years ago. West side is beautiful -- especially once out of the Bow Valley where you can see the stunning Rockies in the distance.

 

[Djr01974]

Morning everyone. I have a question. I will be visiting relatives just outside Alberta Canada in October, we will be going to their lake house how’s the flying there. I’m coming from California

 

[Dizzy1971]

Alberta is 250,000 square miles of land and water my friend. You’ll need to be a tiny bit more specific about where you’ll be wanting to fly. I will say this though,if you are well outside of the main cities,and the appropriate distance away from airports and helipads,there is really no end to the amazing places to fly. Airmap is in the App Store for free and it’s a pretty good resource for viewing controlled airspace in Canada but keepin mind it doesn’t show every airstrip. There are a lot of private strips in this part of Canada. The flying rules are different here than in the USA,but not wildly so.

 

[Djr01974]

Hi dizzy , I’ve never been to Canada. I do use air map here in the US. All I know is they have couple large pieces of land one I believe in Calgary and the other somewhere in Alberta where their lake house is at. I have read up on your rules and regulations and yes similar but a little different. I always obey the laws anyways. They did tell me there is a lot of very nice scenery. I will find out where exactly it is and get back to you. I have already called the airlines and checked with bringing my drone, they said it’s not a problem.

 

[Djr01974]

The lake house is in lake Windermere. East Kootenay British Columbia. Looks like it’s a yellow zone. Invermere airport looks to be close by. How are they with getting the ok to fly in those parts? I’m registered here in the states with FAA as a hobbyist.

 

[Dizzy1971]

Unfortunately there’s no exceptions made for hobbyists. Controlled airspace,is off limits. However,in Windermere there are a couple of areas that are outside the control zone for invermere airport and helipad at the hospital. I think if you look a bit further south and west there’s some places to fly.

 

[Djr01974]

Hey dizzy yeah I saw that a little south of there it’s all clear.

 

[Djr01974]

So the house we are staying at is south of there across the way from the stolen church. Looks like it’s all clear there

 

[Mrveronn]

Check out Drone Pilot Canada...