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Flying in Normandy France

Friso

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Mar 25, 2017
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Hey all,

In a couple of weeks I'm going camping in Normandy France. I was wondering if anyone had flown here? I would really like to fly over the WWII landing beaches and bunkers and especially a flatlay shot from the American Cemetery. I don't see any of the places marked as NFZ on the DJI app, but since the Cemetery is US territory I assume there will be some strict rules.

Please let me know if any of you have experience flying here.

Thanks in advance,

Friso
 
If you Google it the French regulations are on line, along with a map that tells you when and where you can fly across the entire country, and it's available in English.

Regarding the beaches, they're all but empty. Just do it and avoid sunbathers. Regarding the cemeteries, some people might take exception but I think they'd be idiots. Not only did these men die for our freedoms to do such things but the more anyone sees of these vast cemeteries the more they'll be inclined to learn about the two wars that decimated so many populations. Too many kids today almost don't even know these wars took place. Just do it but stay up and away and don't prolong the exercise unnecessarily and you'll be fine. Early morning would be a good time for all these sites actually - it's quiet and the lighting will be excellent.

Finally, if you get the chance, go to Vimy Ridge. Not only is the preserved bombed-out WWI landscape (with some trench system too) an incredible experience, but the Canadian War memorial that stands there is, to my mind, the most beautiful and moving piece of architecture of its kind; you won't regret it.
 
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A very practical website for France : Découvrez des spots de drone - DroneSpot

Quick access to fly zones and points of interests.
The map comes from Geoportail, and the legends are:
- red = no-fly zone
- pink = no higher than 30m altitude
- dark orange = no higher than 50m altitude
- light orange = no higher than 60m altitude
- yellow = no higher than 100m higher altitude
- everything else : maximum 150m altitude

Another thing to keep in mind : the aircraft must always be in your line of sight, no long-range, and if you fly FPV, better to have someone keeping an eye on the aircraft !

Enjoy, it's a very emotion-rich spot for sure
 
I was there in May, I followed the rule about not flying in the NFZ. I took off from parking lots and immediately flew out to what I wanted to take photos of. other than a few kids saying "look a drone that's cool" nobody even notices I was there. flying a mavic pro.
 

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Nice one! I'm a French/Kiwi so understand it can be hard from time to follow all these French rules.
I've taken the time to study them as some are quite hard to understand or even find..

For example, in FRANCE you should not fly on the 14th of July anywhere in the country.. (National day with tons of fireworks and police is already busy keeping the streets safe on this day). Another one is a local Notam for the Tour de France as the event is followed by several copters and you should keep the zone free.

Overall, the geoportail is really well done but sometimes you might find some odd spots such as one house in a park where you can't fly above but all around yes.. One thing that differs from most countries is that if your drone weights more than 800 g, then it should be registered via this platform AlphaTango

If you're keen to learn more, I've aimed to sum it up amap here: https://www.drone-made.com/blog/france-drone-laws
Hope this helps and you guys enjoy my country!
 
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Research the archives for historic photos or films from D-Day, print reference copies to take with you, and recreate them with your drone- it would make for an interesting video if you could pull it off. I belong to the Flickr group “Looking into the Past”, and we’ve been featured by NPR and others doing exactly this. There are some amazing blended shots the group has done, like Hitler leading his army through the Arc de Triomphe in B&W while people walk by in Color with cellphones and modern cars parked on the same street next to it.
 
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Hey all,

In a couple of weeks I'm going camping in Normandy France. I was wondering if anyone had flown here? I would really like to fly over the WWII landing beaches and bunkers and especially a flatlay shot from the American Cemetery. I don't see any of the places marked as NFZ on the DJI app, but since the Cemetery is US territory I assume there will be some strict rules.

Please let me know if any of you have experience flying here.

Thanks in advance,

Friso
Do u have a metal detector to find metal. Bullets, war pieces, helmets, etc
 
Do u have a metal detector to find metal. Bullets, war pieces, helmets, etc

Bad idea, French antiquity laws are very strict. All artifacts on Omaha Beach from D-Day, as from other WWIi sites there, are nationally historic and are protected by law. As they should be- the beach is a memorial site and a lot of families had close relatives who died there.
 
Hey all,

In a couple of weeks I'm going camping in Normandy France. I was wondering if anyone had flown here? I would really like to fly over the WWII landing beaches and bunkers and especially a flatlay shot from the American Cemetery. I don't see any of the places marked as NFZ on the DJI app, but since the Cemetery is US territory I assume there will be some strict rules.

Please let me know if any of you have experience flying here.

Thanks in advance,

Friso
hopefully you can see some artifacts from the altitude and maybe gather some if possible
 

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