Regulations in Seattle and adjoining parks

[Rwarrior]

Hi there, greetings from Singapore. I am planning a holiday to Seattle in October, and would like to know the extent of regulations about flying my Spark in Seattle ; I've read other posts which seem to indicate that it's quite restrictive. I also plan to visit some of the adjoining parks such as mount rainier national park and north cascade national park. Are there restrictions on flying here as well?
Final question: Will I have to register with the FAA even though I'm a tourist and visiting for about 2 weeks only?
Any guidance is deeply appreciated; many thanks!

 

[Spark 317]

Hello from the Hoosier Heartland, Rwarrior.

If it's a National Park, it's a NFZ.

I found this from the FAA website.





There is an app called AirMap available free from the stores.

It will help you find safe places to fly and warnings.

Here is a screenshot.



The red triangle will tell you all the information you may need.

Good Luck and welcome to the Forum.

 

[Andre Levite]

Flying in National Parks will get you in BIG trouble very quickly. That's a definite no-no.

Many states have followed suit and made all of their State Parks a NFZ as well (such as here in Florida).

While local municipalities cannot dictate how air space is used (only the FAA has this authority) they can disallow specific activies. A lot of county and city parks haven't addressed drones (yet) so they are still an option. But I still search their website for unposted regulations. And you really need to back off of there are people where you planned to fly. I wind up flying over water alot just to stay away.

Pretty restrictive but still doable with a little research. I always check AirMap too - mostly for airports and temporary NFZ.

 

[Rwarrior]

Hello from the Hoosier Heartland, Rwarrior.

If it's a National Park, it's a NFZ.

I found this from the FAA website.

View attachment 6349



There is an app called AirMap available free from the stores.

It will help you find safe places to fly and warnings.

Here is a screenshot.

View attachment 6347

The red triangle will tell you all the information you may need.

Good Luck and welcome to the Forum.

Kind thanks Spark 317, for the quick and very helpful reply. It does seem to be quite challenging to legally fly in these areas... sigh..was really looking forward to getting different scenery compared to urban Singapore.
But again, many thanks for the advice and the warm welcome.. [emoji1]

 

[Rwarrior]

Flying in National Parks will get you in BIG trouble very quickly. That's a definite no-no.

Many states have followed suit and made all of their State Parks a NFZ as well (such as here in Florida).

While local municipalities cannot dictate how air space is used (only the FAA has this authority) they can disallow specific activies. A lot of county and city parks haven't addressed drones (yet) so they are still an option. But I still search their website for unposted regulations. And you really need to back off of there are people where you planned to fly. I wind up flying over water alot just to stay away.

Pretty restrictive but still doable with a little research. I always check AirMap too - mostly for airports and temporary NFZ.

Thanks Andre for the advice, very helpful indeed. If i do decide if it's worth the effort to bring my Spark up for 2 weeks, will certainly stay within the rules.
Cheers, and thanks again.

 

[Celendis]

Hey Rwarrior, as someone who lives in the Seattle area, I am keenly interested in the flight rules here. As stated earlier, drone flights in national parks are prohibited. Additionally, designated wilderness areas are prohibited. You can view these locations at wilderness.net. Washington State Parks, King County Parks, and Seattle City Parks have all prohibited drone operation inside their respective parks. Further, there are many airports and helipads in and around the Seattle area. Before you fly, you will need to notify any airfield that is within 5 miles of your planned flight. The excellent smartphone app AirMap will alert you to them and provide the published phone numbers to contact them.

 

[Rwarrior]

Hey Rwarrior, as someone who lives in the Seattle area, I am keenly interested in the flight rules here. As stated earlier, drone flights in national parks are prohibited. Additionally, designated wilderness areas are prohibited. You can view these locations at wilderness.net. Washington State Parks, King County Parks, and Seattle City Parks have all prohibited drone operation inside their respective parks. Further, there are many airports and helipads in and around the Seattle area. Before you fly, you will need to notify any airfield that is within 5 miles of your planned flight. The excellent smartphone app AirMap will alert you to them and provide the published phone numbers to contact them.

Thanks Celendis for the helpful info on the local situation, much appreciated! I am still hopeful about flying there...