Flying in Toronto?

[Greatsign1]

I will be in Toronto for 1 day and would really like to fly my mini, especially around the waterfront as sunrise. Can anyone please let me know if this would be a problem. I checked on drone zone and see there are some restrictions but I did not see any specifics as to hight limits etc. Any advice for do's and don'ts would be much apprreciated. I am not looking to do anything stupid that would draw attention to myself just launch take a few pics and RTH without getting hassled. Thanks!

 

[Robert Prior]

Sub-250 g drone, so legal as long as you are flying safely. (What is safe is a legal grey area, in the absence of specific regulations or case law to define it.)

Drone site selection tool - National Research Council Canada

nrc.canada.ca

Note the location (and flight paths) of Billy Bishop Airport on Toronto Island, as well as various heliports.

Drone pilots operating in these areas are warned that flying when other aircraft are present, and/or in the vicinity of the airport/heliport land may, depending on the circumstances, be considered reckless or negligent under CAR 900.06. The drone pilot needs to exercise extreme caution and vigilance.

If you chose to fly in this area and see other aircraft operating it is recommended to land, stop flying, and reassess the situation.

Also note that Toronto parks are no drone zones. Police tend not to enforce that bylaw, but have the option.

Flying your drone safely and legally

How to fly a drone legally and safely in Canada

tc.canada.ca

 

[Greatsign1]

Thank you Robert. Is there another app I should be using instead of B4UFLY to warn me of no fly zones and my limits before launching?

 

[Robert Prior]

Thank you Robert. Is there another app I should be using instead of B4UFLY to warn me of no fly zones and my limits before launching?

AFAIK, B4UFLY is an American app produced by the FAA. Up here regulations are Transport Canada, so I don't know how plugged in the FAA app would be.

I use Drone Pilot Canada, which is a great app but probably expensive for a short visit.

Drone Pilot Canada

dronepilotcanada.com

Transport Canada has an app, but it appears to be more concerned with handling drone operations than mapping. (Basing this on the note that some tools are not available on mobile versions of the app.)

NAV CANADA NAV Drone Support

NAV Drone Support Page

www.navcanada.ca

Your best bet is probably to use the NRC site selection tool and check NOTAMs manually

 

[Zbip57]

Sub-250 g drone, so legal as long as you are flying safely. (What is safe is a legal grey area, in the absence of specific regulations or case law to define it.)

Drone site selection tool - National Research Council Canada

nrc.canada.ca

When using that NRC tool, note there are different option settings for Micro (Sub250g), Basic, or Advanced operations. See this previous post talking about Niagara Falls for more details.
mavicpilots.com/threads/hello-from-niagara-falls-canada.110375/#post-1249249

 

[WanderLost]

Thank you Robert. Is there another app I should be using instead of B4UFLY to warn me of no fly zones and my limits before launching?

In Canada, we can use Transport Canada's Navdrone app to plan "operations" and it will clearly show where you can and can't fly. Ordinarily, for your mini, the only restrictions are "don't do anything stupid" which would definitely mean no flying in restricted airspace. As others have pointed out, you will need to be aware of your distance from the waterfront airport and avoid flying into their airspace.

 

[Dronecation]

I will be in Toronto for 1 day and would really like to fly my mini, especially around the waterfront as sunrise. Can anyone please let me know if this would be a problem. I checked on drone zone and see there are some restrictions but I did not see any specifics as to hight limits etc. Any advice for do's and don'ts would be much apprreciated. I am not looking to do anything stupid that would draw attention to myself just launch take a few pics and RTH without getting hassled. Thanks!

Good video here for any other questions you might have:

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[Dronecation]

More here:

Taking Your Drone to Canada? What You Need to Know

Now that travel is surging again, drone pilots are eager to head off on holiday this summer. Every country has different rules for foreign drone pilots,

dronereviewsandnews.com