How to: LEGALLY Unlock ALL DJI Geo Zones In Your Area

cyeung · Jun 21, 2020

This advice is best suited for Part 107 operators as it involves seeking a waiver from 14 CFR 107.29 (Daylight Operations).

Being based in Atlanta, I live near a lot of controlled airspace:

I used to file an airspace use authorization specific to each job. For places I fly more than once a year (e.g. church or my neighborhood), I have authorizations on file specific to each area. I just succeeded in getting blanket authorizations for the area that I service. I hope this framework helps someone ...

Get a waiver for daylight operations (107.29). You would want to make sure to:
1. Answer all the Waiver Safety Explanation Guidelines here: Waiver Safety Explanation Guidelines for Part 107 Waiver Applications, especially the PDF that asks for information about mitigations for certain risks.
2. Apply for the longest timeline possible, up to four years.
Once you receive your waiver, apply for the Airspace Use Authorizations, making sure to:
1. Specify the maximum timeframe allowed (two years).
2. All the timeframes are selected (Sunrise to noon, Noon to 4 PM, 4 PM to Sunset, and Night).
3. Frequency is set to Daily.
4. Set your proposed maximum altitude to 400 ft.
5. Set your location to the airport's tower coordinates, which you can find in the chart supplements: Digital - Chart Supplement (d-CS). The coordinate system is degrees/minutes. You will need to convert the fractions of a minute to seconds.
6. Set Radius to Blanket Area/Wide Area.
Once you get your airspace use authorizations, go to Fly Safe – Drone Flying Tips, Policies & Regulations, and More – DJI to get your custom unlocks. You can unlock multiple zones per request. Click in the center of each airport, specify a radius of 7-8 km (enough to get past the NFZs, authorization zones, and enhanced warning zones), and altitude of 121 meters.