DJI Mavic, Air and Mini Drones
Friendly, Helpful & Knowledgeable Community
Join Us Now

LAANC and night flights under new rule

Maviac

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 26, 2018
Messages
699
Reactions
751
Location
United States
I have done some cursory research on this (but not anything extensive) and can't find an answer. My house is in class D airspace and so I've always had to get LAANC authorization to fly in my back yard. No big deal. But I've never been able to fly at night there, and I could get some really nice city views if I could (I can drive over to the shopping center 1/2 mile away just outside the airspace but frankly I have two small kids and by that point in the day I'm exhausted).

I've requested LAANC clearance at night (actually, never got as far as requesting, just proposing a flight plan), stating in AirMap it's under recreational rules (and also tried a while back under 107 just to see what happened), but it doesn't allow it, saying "night flight prohibited." Fair enough. But now that 14 CFR 107.29 has been amended, is there any chance we can fly in those areas at night? In my case, I looked into getting around it by flying after the tower closed, but it turns out it becomes class E from the surface at that point concomitant with the regular class D, so no luck.

I can't do it until I get my strobes, but just curious how this will work.
 
As of right now, Night Flights in Controlled Airspace does not have a provision for compliance.

It is in the works but not FUNTIONAL now. The suggestion is that a LAANC Approval will be a 24hr approval with notations for Night Operations. But until it goes LIVE it's just a rumor. As or right now the GOAL is to have something in place by 4/21/21 but it's not out yet.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ResistanceFlyer
As of right now, Night Flights in Controlled Airspace does not have a provision for compliance.

It is in the works but not FUNTIONAL now. The suggestion is that a LAANC Approval will be a 24hr approval with notations for Night Operations. But until it goes LIVE it's just a rumor. As or right now the GOAL is to have something in place by 4/21/21 but it's not out yet.
Thanks! I was hesitant to ask the question, but I'm glad I did. What is the provision prohibiting night flight in controlled airspace right now?
 
  • Like
Reactions: ResistanceFlyer
Thanks! I was hesitant to ask the question, but I'm glad I did. What is the provision prohibiting night flight in controlled airspace right now?


Right now (since the day it was released) LAANC denies request for flight during the night. No approval = no flights (legally)
 
Thanks! I was hesitant to ask the question, but I'm glad I did. What is the provision prohibiting night flight in controlled airspace right now?


  • LAANC request will not be authorized for night flight and must have an end time prior to sunset.
  • LAANC authorizations cannot be combined with Part 107 waivers. For example, if you get permission to fly in Class D airspace through a LAANC application, and you already have a waiver to fly at night, you may not combine the permissions to fly in that Class D airspace at night. In order to fly in controlled airspace using your waiver, you must submit a request for an airspace authorization via the DroneZone.
 
  • LAANC request will not be authorized for night flight and must have an end time prior to sunset.
  • LAANC authorizations cannot be combined with Part 107 waivers. For example, if you get permission to fly in Class D airspace through a LAANC application, and you already have a waiver to fly at night, you may not combine the permissions to fly in that Class D airspace at night. In order to fly in controlled airspace using your waiver, you must submit a request for an airspace authorization via the DroneZone.
BigAL07. This is an excerpt from a FAA email I received concerning the 107 online recurrent notification.

The FAA will accept airspace authorization requests from remote pilots to operate in controlled airspace at night as long as they have completed the updated testing or training requirements.

Will this be via LAANC?
 
  • LAANC request will not be authorized for night flight and must have an end time prior to sunset.
  • LAANC authorizations cannot be combined with Part 107 waivers. For example, if you get permission to fly in Class D airspace through a LAANC application, and you already have a waiver to fly at night, you may not combine the permissions to fly in that Class D airspace at night. In order to fly in controlled airspace using your waiver, you must submit a request for an airspace authorization via the DroneZone.
Right, but what's the statutory or regulatory authority for that? To be clear, I'm not planning to fly without authorization, but I'm still trying to find the reg that governs this.
 
BigAL07. This is an excerpt from a FAA email I received concerning the 107 online recurrent notification.

The FAA will accept airspace authorization requests from remote pilots to operate in controlled airspace at night as long as they have completed the updated testing or training requirements.

Will this be via LAANC?


That is the ANTICPATED action but as of today it's not active (as far as I know). The goal is to have it "Turned On" by 4/21/21 but we all know how dates and the FAA go sometimes.
 
Right, but what's the statutory or regulatory authority for that? To be clear, I'm not planning to fly without authorization, but I'm still trying to find the reg that governs this.


You'll have to dig through the regs and find it yourself. I've given you what I have available at the moment the rest is up to you my friend.
 
You'll have to dig through the regs and find it yourself. I've given you what I have available at the moment the rest is up to you my friend.
Thank you. Perfectly fair. I'll look into it further, but my initial search didn't turn up anything.
 
Last edited:
Right, but what's the statutory or regulatory authority for that? To be clear, I'm not planning to fly without authorization, but I'm still trying to find the reg that governs this.
It's not a regulatory issue, it's a procedural one.

As of now, the only way to fly at night in controlled airspace is with a 107.29 Daylight Waiver attached to a 107.41 Airspace Authorization. If you don't attach a 107.29 to your 107.41 application, it will be denied for night operations.

And LAANC is not set up for night or twilight ops either.

Since these are the only two ways to fly at night in controlled airspace, you can't.

The regulatory authority comes from the fact that ATC and ATO work together to make the rules for flying in controlled airspace. And right now they say no.
 
Last edited:
It's not a regulatory issue, it's a procedural one.

As of now, the only way to fly at night in controlled airspace is with a 107.29 Daylight Waiver attached to a 107.41 Airspace Authorization. If you don't attach a 107.29 to your 107.41 application, it will be denied for night operations.

And LAANC is not set up for night or twilight ops either.

Since these are the only two ways to fly at night in controlled airspace, you can't.

The regulatory authority comes from the fact that ATC and ATO work together to make the rules for flying in controlled airspace. And right now they say no.
Thanks. That was what I'd concluded as well, but good to hear confirmation from someone who knows this stuff much better than I.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Vic Moss
Update: I can't speak to the recreational flyers, but with an updated/upgraded Part 107 exam, you can apply for LAANC during daylight hours, then continue flying at night - at least through September 30th.

I would only add that your daylight LAANC approval has to be for the same date as you night flight. For example, if you're flying at 1:30AM on June 4th, you can't use a LAANC approval dated on June 3rd. You can apply for a LAANC authorization for up to 90 days in advance.

And if your flight goes from 11:30PM on June 4th to 12:30AM on June 5th, you have to use two separate LAANC requests.
 
How to Get LAANC Airspace Authorizations for Drone Flights at Night

 
Lycus Tech Mavic Air 3 Case

DJI Drone Deals

New Threads

Forum statistics

Threads
130,584
Messages
1,554,097
Members
159,588
Latest member
gfusato