can't fly without putting in code after update

[railfan-eric]

I always fly the drone, currently Mavic Air 2 at Emporia KS to get train pics and videos. now after the update the other day it made me put in the code to fly. and every time i fly i have to click past the popup. it's annoying. we just have a small unmanned airport. why am i having to put in a code now like the big airports? that makes it inconvenient. so no I'm wondering if i have to fill out a form and get permission to fly from the FAA just to fly where I've always flown before. I'm not going to go through that hassle on a regular basis. everywhere we go there's always a small airport or big airport. am i going to have to get authorization from the FAA no matter where we go now? when we go watch trains at the spur of the moment that isn't' going to work. I still haven't figured out how to request the authorization. i was in the process of figuring out only to find i have to take a test to fly. so i haven't done it yet.

 

[GFields]

I always fly the drone, currently Mavic Air 2 at Emporia KS to get train pics and videos. now after the update the other day it made me put in the code to fly. and every time i fly i have to click past the popup. it's annoying. we just have a small unmanned airport. why am i having to put in a code now like the big airports? that makes it inconvenient. so no I'm wondering if i have to fill out a form and get permission to fly from the FAA just to fly where I've always flown before. I'm not going to go through that hassle on a regular basis. everywhere we go there's always a small airport or big airport. am i going to have to get authorization from the FAA no matter where we go now? when we go watch trains at the spur of the moment that isn't' going to work. I still haven't figured out how to request the authorization. i was in the process of figuring out only to find i have to take a test to fly. so i haven't done it yet.

Just out of curiosity, what drone are you flying?

All drones that are GEO fencing enabled will require FAA approval to fly in restricted air space. Many airports have LAANC (Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability) systems to get approved within minutes. If you are flying a DJI drone (which is most likely the case) you will then need to get a custom unlock code from their FlySafe website.

Depending on the airspace, this can sometimes be done within the app

 

[railfan-eric]

Just out of curiosity, what drone are you flying?

All drones that are GEO fencing enabled will require FAA approval to fly in restricted air space. Many airports have LAANC (Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability) systems to get approved within minutes. If you are flying a DJI drone (which is most likely the case) you will then need to get a custom unlock code from their FlySafe website.

Depending on the airspace, this can sometimes be done within the app

i said what drone it is in the first sentence. only drone i own. last time i was in KC trying to fly over Santa Fe Junction i set it all up on FlySafe on my laptop but couldn't' get the code from the email to the app and controller. spent 20 mins trying. so i had to do it through the app and controller but not using my custom airspace i used on Fly Safe.

but why is a small airport requiring this now? are they getting stricter with the requirements? do i have to request FAA authorization for the small airports too the same as the big ones?

 

[GFields]

i said what drone it is in the first sentence. only drone i own. last time i was in KC trying to fly over Santa Fe Junction i set it all up on FlySafe on my laptop but couldn't' get the code from the email to the app and controller. spent 20 mins trying. so i had to do it through the app and controller but not using my custom airspace i used on Fly Safe.

but why is a small airport requiring this now? are they getting stricter with the requirements? do i have to request FAA authorization for the small airports too the same as the big ones?

My bad, read it then forgot it as I read on.

You don't get an unlock code via email. You get an email letting you know if your flight plan was accepted or rejected. The unlock code is downloaded to the controller (based on controller ID) of the drone you entered the serial number for when getting the unlock code. Then inside the app, you go to "license and unlock" and add the code to the aircraft. Then you will be able to launch your drone. If you don't have cellular service on the site you wish to fly, I'd set all this up at home before departing.

That is one advantage of having a drone that doesn't have GEO fencing. Just get LAANC approval and fly.

 

[GFields]

but why is a small airport requiring this now?

No idea. DJI is constantly updating their Airspace Restriction zones, so looks like the small airport got included

 

[railfan-eric]

Yes I did. You just didn't get the second post before replying

so does that mean i need FAA authorization for any airport where DJI asked for a unlock code? or say the hell with it since it's small airport.

 

[GFields]

so does that mean i need FAA authorization for any airport where DJI asked for a unlock code? or say the hell with it since it's small airport.

No, not necessarily. FAA approvals are based on the Airspace types, Class B, Class C, etc. DJI is not always in sync with the FAA so I use two tools before heading out to do a job.

1. The FAA UAS Data Map
2. DJI GEO Zone Map

 

[railfan-eric]

No, not necessarily. FAA approvals are based on the Airspace types, Class B, Class C, etc. DJI is not always in sync with the FAA so I use two tools before heading out to do a job.

1. The FAA UAS Data Map
2. DJI GEO Zone Map

ok. thanks. thats' a relief. i was afraid i would have to do that hassle all the time. i feel for those that have to do it everywhere they go in the big cities where there are lots of big airports.

 

[GFields]

ok. thanks. thats' a relief. i was afraid i would have to do that hassle all the time. i feel for those that have to do it everywhere they go in the big cities where there are lots of big airports.

Or get a drone that doesn't have GEO fencing. As of late, my go-to drone is the Autel Evo Lite+