I can't fly legally over a city in Spain? Am I misunderstanding something?

[Yaros]

Hello, I have flown my drone for almost a year now on the island called Mallorca, in class G airspace, very far away from Airports (90 km / 50 miles away actually). So I don't need to worry about the no-fly zones, because there are actually no no-fly zones nearby. There is no city nearby, only some villages which I like to fly in, never had any problem.

Now in December I want to visit Benidorm, Alicante and some other cities, and I would like to take my drone, but I am concerned about the legality of the flights.
On most websites regarding the new drone laws and regulations (from 2021) I see that you can't fly over any city or people, check these screenshots:





Okay fine, I say. But what's not fine and not fair is that I see other people on YouTube flying over really big cities like Barcelona and Madrid, and posting it online! So what's the deal with it?
Check this:





Also, I check EASA website and there is no rule regarding flying over cities, so it's only AESA then?
Is the footage uploaded to YouTube illegal then, or it's me misunderstanding something??

Any help would be really appreciated, because I really don't want to get fined for flying a drone, you know

 

[slup]

...But what's not fine and not fair is that I see other people on YouTube flying over really big cities like Barcelona and Madrid, and posting it online! So what's the deal with it?

Rules & regulation have nothing what so ever to do with what you think's is fair or what you might be able to find on the YT. Don't really think you will come that far if getting caught and claiming that you've seen thing's on YT & it's unfair that you can't do the same. People take risks ... & sometimes even on the expense of others & get away with it, it's as simple as that.

Is the footage uploaded to YouTube illegal then, or it's me misunderstanding something??

Yeah ... you misunderstand this. It's no law that prohibits someone to upload a clip showing drone law violations. YT have their own rules but it's not their business to stop drone vids that violate laws & regulations.

But with that said ... those that upload thing's like this take a risk to be tracked by authorities that regulate how drones can & shall be used.

Any help would be really appreciated, because I really don't want to get fined for flying a drone...

The best advise here is that you take contact with the proper authorities (AESA/EASA) as it's only there you will be given correct & valid information that you can point to if someone have objections regarding your flying ... you can't use forum advice's for that. Do this & you will be on the safe side & can fly legal without being afraid getting caught & forced to pay large fines & getting your drone confiscated.

 

[MARK (LI)]

I do applaud your efforts and intentions...but we see the same thing here in the US...in fact we see it right on this forum people are busting the regs ...then bragging about it and getting applause and recognition...you can just do what you know is right and hopefully be a positive influence in the hobby....just keep yourself out of trouble I hope you do have a good trip and get some really good video...even if it isn't everything you were looking for

 

[Yaros]

Okay, I can't comprehend this...
They say you can't fly over cities, over people, over cars, over anything basically?
Then how we (as drone pilots) make great videos and photos on our drones? Aren't drones meant for that?
It's like: I don't have any desert to fly it near where I live, and besides, what would you film in areas like that?
That makes literally no sense, I will do what I think is right, no matter if it is breaking the laws or not, and let's just be honest: I think most, if not everyone on this forum has broken some drone rule before, would it be flying higher than 400 feet, or flying BVLOS, or whatever it is!

So it looks like their job is to make it hard for us to take great videos and enjoy our flights instead of making it actually safe. Drones nowadays have more than enough safety features to make them okay to fly over cities, with insurance of course. At least that's my point of view. They don't trust technology, they don't see how it is evolving every day, and even then, it's not their responsibility that drones fall from the sky (I don't say they do anyway), it's mostly the pilot's fault, not them. The pilot should consider and decide if something is safe or not, it's their drone at the end of the day!
If it keeps going in this direction, then in a few years drones will not be permitted to fly at all??
Bruh, I'm disappointed

 

[slup]

Okay, I can't comprehend this...
They say you can't fly over cities, over people, over cars, over anything basically?
Then how we (as drone pilots) make great videos and photos on our drones? Aren't drones meant for that?

Just because gadgets are being sold on the open market & can be purchased by people without any knowledge of what makes these gadgets fly & totally ignorant regarding rules & regulations ... doesn't mean that all thing's you can do with these gadgets will be allowed.

You mainly selfish turn around the reasoning ... with your thinking it would be allowed to set all speed limits aside in the traffic if you've bought a car that can go faster than the allowed speed limit.

So it looks like their job is to make it hard for us to take great videos and enjoy our flights instead of making it actually safe. Drones nowadays have more than enough safety features to make them okay to fly over cities, with insurance of course. At least that's my point of view.

Again your thinking is selfish ... so you mean that you should be allowed to do what ever you want because you have an insurance & that the drone technology of today is more or less failsafe! The reason that we have authorities with an overall responsibility over the airspace is due to your kind of thinking. They will consider everyone's safety, not only make it possible for you to take holiday vids on the expense of other's safety.

...The pilot should consider and decide if something is safe or not, it's their drone at the end of the day!
...I will do what I think is right, no matter if it is breaking the laws or not...

That would lead to total chaos ... this as the average drone owner usually don't grasp what can happen if thing's go haywire, rely 100% on that the techy gadget will save them whatever happens & whatever stupid decisions the pilot makes ... The sad truth is that the average pilot is rather ignorant about everything that concerns flying a drone... & on top of this also expresses the same thoughts as you ... putting every body else in danger.

A couple of examples ...

Here we have a guy ... that thought it was safe to go to 500m altitude over a residential area, then try out a distance test down wind, with a phone without sufficient charge. He lost the control of the drone on the return path as the phone stopped working & the battery didn't last the whole way back home.

Instead his drone auto landed here ... imagine if it had been a baby stroller standing there with the drone landing in the face of the baby ... yeah sure, you said you had an insurance, no harm done then!

You have the incident here --> Lost Mini 2 failed RTH - Help with analysis and GPS



And here you have a guy that had been totally ignorant about battery care ... his battery failed & the drone auto landed right down on a road with heavy traffic ... imagine if that drone landing had caused a traffic incident with several injured or maybe killed people!

Here you have the full incident --> Mavic 2 Zoom. "I got run over by a car."

If it keeps going in this direction, then in a few years drones will not be permitted to fly at all??

The selfish & ignorant thinking you show ... is exactly why the rules & regulations becomes more & more strict & limiting every year.

 

[Yaros]

I'm not trying to sound rude or selfish.
I know there are people that don't care about others, or even their own drone and batteries.
But that shouldn't be the reason why they put these restrictions.
If you would live in Spain you would see the problem, there are far more restrictions than in the US and even other EU countries.

They need to understand that mistakes and unexpected situations can, and eventually will happen! No matter how hard they try to make it harder or safer for us, it will not stop the people that are reckless about flying drones.

People that fly like in your examples above don't even care about following the rules, it's the person's problem, not EASA's or FAA's.
Even I can admit: I fly BVLOS most of the time, but I care about what most people say about it, I don't do stupid stuff anyway.

 

[slup]

...I know there are people that don't care about others, or even their own drone and batteries.
But that shouldn't be the reason why they put these restrictions.

That is exactly the reason why rules & regulations are being tightened up on regular basis ... & on top of this the authorities also forces companies like DJI to build in boundaries in their firmware's that effectively stop drones to go too high or fly in no fly zones... otherwise the authorities will limit DJI's possibility to sell drones on their market.

They need to understand that mistakes and unexpected situations can, and eventually will happen! No matter how hard they try to make it harder or safer for us, it will not stop the people that are reckless about flying drones.

Yeah ... I admit that rules & regulations are for the law abiding citizens, that's why DJI drones are stopped to fly in certain areas through the firmware & their geo zone mapping. And ... if you get caught violating the regulations you bet it will cost you big fines & result in that you get your drone confiscated.

...I don't do stupid stuff

How can they know that ..?

I bet you can apply for flying in the places you want, in that application process they will get to know your purpose of the flight, your knowledge level & what safety measures you will be using.

 

[Yaros]

Okay fine. Rant over!
I am constantly trying to not break any drone laws (at least as much as possible).
I think we all hope that there will be fewer people doing stupid stuff with drones, but that's sad doesn't seem to be the case.
Most people that don't fly drones see drones as a weapon, not a tool.
That's all because they see in the news like these:


and many others...
Pretty sad to say this though

 

[Robert Prior]

Is the footage uploaded to YouTube illegal then, or it's me misunderstanding something??

Often, yes. Or the pilot has appropriate licenses and permissions. (Although if I had to bet, I'd go with 'illegal flights' based on what YouTube wants to show me when I search for drone videos.) There have been cases of people being prosecuted based on YouTube videos.

One reason I bought a Mini was so I could fly in places I couldn't with a heavier aircraft. The image quality isn't as good as my M2P, but it lets me legally fly closer to home.

 

[cameracamel]

Hello, I have flown my drone for almost a year now on the island called Mallorca, in class G airspace, very far away from Airports (90 km / 50 miles away actually). So I don't need to worry about the no-fly zones, because there are actually no no-fly zones nearby. There is no city nearby, only some villages which I like to fly in, never had any problem.

Now in December I want to visit Benidorm, Alicante and some other cities, and I would like to take my drone, but I am concerned about the legality of the flights.
On most websites regarding the new drone laws and regulations (from 2021) I see that you can't fly over any city or people, check these screenshots:

View attachment 138698

View attachment 138699

Okay fine, I say. But what's not fine and not fair is that I see other people on YouTube flying over really big cities like Barcelona and Madrid, and posting it online! So what's the deal with it?
Check this:

View attachment 138700

View attachment 138702

Also, I check EASA website and there is no rule regarding flying over cities, so it's only AESA then?
Is the footage uploaded to YouTube illegal then, or it's me misunderstanding something??

Any help would be really appreciated, because I really don't want to get fined for flying a drone, you know

Just keep your plane, away from the rain in Spain.........

 

[Heavydpj]

Hello, I have flown my drone for almost a year now on the island called Mallorca, in class G airspace, very far away from Airports (90 km / 50 miles away actually). So I don't need to worry about the no-fly zones, because there are actually no no-fly zones nearby. There is no city nearby, only some villages which I like to fly in, never had any problem.

Now in December I want to visit Benidorm, Alicante and some other cities, and I would like to take my drone, but I am concerned about the legality of the flights.

Just want to start off my saying that I love Spain! I was stationed at the airbase in Zaragoza from 1984-1987 and have many fond memories. Our drop zone was in Alicante, and I spent many a weekend partying in Benidorm!

That being said, you need to get your information from the relevant authorities, not the FAA. Similarly, I would not think that the rules in Papua New Guinea (where I live now) would apply to my drone flights in Los Angeles.

Here is a possible site:

Spanish Drone Laws

Check here the updated Spanish drone laws for 2024: licences, drones under 250 gr, requirements for professional flights, where to fly...

www.grupooneair.com

Okay fine, I say. But what's not fine and not fair is that I see other people on YouTube flying over really big cities like Barcelona and Madrid, and posting it online! So what's the deal with it?

Also, I check EASA website and there is no rule regarding flying over cities, so it's only AESA then?
Is the footage uploaded to YouTube illegal then, or it's me misunderstanding something??

People post stupid and illegal stuff on YT all the time. Sometimes it leads to them getting arrested, but most times, it doesn't. It would be dangerous to use the, "I saw it on YouTube" defense.

 

[Heavydpj]

Just keep your plane, away from the rain in Spain.........

Yeah, but it falls mainly in the plain.

 

[MARK (LI)]

I think she's got it