What is LAANC? Part 107 airspace authorization explained

LAANC stands for Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability. It is a collaboration between the FAA and industry that gives drone pilots access to controlled airspace at or below 400 feet (FAA: LAANC). You send a request through an app from a UAS Service Supplier the FAA has approved, the request is checked automatically, and if it is approved you can receive the authorization in near real time (FAA: LAANC). Where LAANC isn't available, you apply through FAADroneZone instead (FAA: Part 107 Airspace Authorizations). Either way, the goal is the same: the prior ATC authorization that Part 107 requires before you fly in certain airspace (14 CFR 107.41).

Why you need an airspace authorization

Four kinds of airspace are off limits to a Part 107 drone until Air Traffic Control has said yes in advance: Class B, Class C, Class D and the Class E surface area around an airport (14 CFR 107.41). The FAA puts it simply: drone pilots planning to fly under 400 feet in controlled airspace around airports must receive an airspace authorization from the FAA before they fly (FAA: LAANC). That applies at night too. Part 107 pilots may fly at night without a waiver as long as they meet the rule's requirements, but airspace authorizations are still required for night operations in controlled airspace under 400 feet (FAA: Certificated Remote Pilots).

If you're not sure which airspace your site is in, read Part 107 airspace explained first. It covers where Class B, C, D and E begin and why most of Class E needs no authorization.

How LAANC works

LAANC automates the application and approval process. Each request is checked against several airspace data sources in the FAA UAS Data Exchange, including UAS Facility Maps, special use airspace data, airports and airspace classes, temporary flight restrictions and NOTAMs (FAA: LAANC). The apps themselves come from private companies the FAA has approved, known as UAS Service Suppliers; the FAA's LAANC page lists the current suppliers (FAA: LAANC).

LAANC is available at 726 airports (FAA: LAANC). Unless an authorization specifically asks you to, you don't need to notify the tower before you fly (FAA: LAANC).

UAS Facility Maps: where the altitude numbers come from

UAS Facility Maps show the maximum altitudes around airports where the FAA may authorize Part 107 operations without additional safety analysis (FAA: UAS Facility Maps). The altitudes are set grid square by grid square, and your LAANC app shows the value for your location automatically (FAA: Part 107 Airspace Authorizations).

One point the FAA stresses in capital letters: the maps do not authorize anything. They are for information only, and you must still apply to fly in Class B, C, D or a Class E surface area through LAANC or FAADroneZone (FAA: UAS Facility Maps). The FAA encourages pilots to check the maps before applying, to see which locations and altitudes can be approved quickly (FAA: UAS Facility Maps).

The two kinds of LAANC request

Near real-time authorization. This is the fast route. You apply on the date you wish to fly, select the exact time, altitude and location, and keep your altitude at or below the UAS Facility Map value. Approval typically comes back in near real time (FAA: Part 107 Airspace Authorizations).

Further coordination. Certificated remote pilots who want to go higher than the grid value, but not above 400 feet, can ask for it through LAANC as a further coordination request. Grid squares showing 0 feet qualify; operations on the airport itself don't (FAA: Part 107 Airspace Authorizations). A person reviews these: the Air Traffic Manager responsible for that airspace. Allow for that by sending the request no later than 72 hours ahead of the planned start (FAA: Part 107 Airspace Authorizations). The earliest you can send one is 90 days ahead, and recreational flyers can't use this option (FAA: LAANC). A denial isn't always the end: the facility may explain what to change so you can try again (FAA: Part 107 Airspace Authorizations).

FAADroneZone: the manual route

FAADroneZone provides authorizations for airports that aren't LAANC-enabled. It can also be used at LAANC airports, but it does not give authorizations in near real time: every request is processed manually at FAA Air Traffic Service Centers (FAA: Part 107 Airspace Authorizations). Requests at or below the facility map altitude are approved by the Service Center; requests above it, up to 400 feet, are coordinated with the facility that manages the airspace (FAA: Part 107 Airspace Authorizations).

Plan well ahead. According to the FAA, a FAADroneZone request has historically needed as long as eight weeks from submission, and one sent too close to the flight date may not be ready in time (FAA: Part 107 Airspace Authorizations). In outline, the steps are (FAA: Part 107 Airspace Authorizations):

1. Log in to FAADroneZone and choose "Create Part 107 Waiver/Authorization".
2. Pick the airspace authorization option and start the application.
3. Fill in an operation title, the responsible party (who doesn't have to hold a Remote Pilot Certificate), the dates, times and frequency, the location and your proposed maximum altitude above ground level.
4. Submit, note the reference number, and check the status later from your Part 107 dashboard.

A waiver is a separate application. Part 107 waiver applications now go through the FAA's Aviation Safety Hub, while airspace authorization applications stay in FAADroneZone until further notice (FAA: Part 107 Waivers). Our guide to Part 107 waivers explains when a waiver comes into it.

What an authorization doesn't cover

An authorization answers one question: may you be in this controlled airspace at this time and altitude? It doesn't replace the rest of your preflight. LAANC provides airspace authorizations only, and pilots must still check NOTAMs and the weather and follow all airspace restrictions (FAA: LAANC). A temporary flight restriction still applies to you (14 CFR 107.47), as does the ban on interfering with airport traffic patterns (14 CFR 107.43). Our guide to special use airspace and TFRs covers those checks.

Two more points are worth knowing. An approval is never automatic: FAA guidance says the agency may turn an operation down because of how busy the airspace is, how much work controllers have, communication problems, or anything else that could hurt the safe, efficient flow of traffic there (AC 107-2A, para. 5.10). And the AIM says these authorizations come only through the formal processes such as LAANC and DroneZone, never by an informal call: small drone operators shouldn't radio or phone ATC to ask for airspace access (AIM 11-8-2).

A worked example

You're hired to photograph a building 2 nautical miles from a Class D airport (a made-up one for this example). The site is inside the Class D, so you need authorization before you fly.

1. Your LAANC app shows a facility map altitude of 200 feet for the grid square over the building. If 150 feet is enough, you apply on the day of the shoot, and approval typically comes back in near real time (FAA: Part 107 Airspace Authorizations).
2. The client wants a shot from 300 feet. That is higher than the grid allows, so you file a further coordination request three or more days before the shoot and schedule it for later in the week (FAA: Part 107 Airspace Authorizations).
3. If the airport weren't LAANC-enabled, you would apply through FAADroneZone and allow for processing that has historically taken up to eight weeks (FAA: Part 107 Airspace Authorizations).
4. On the day, you still check NOTAMs and the weather before takeoff (FAA: LAANC).

LAANC on the knowledge test

For the knowledge test, make sure you can explain where 107.41 requires authorization, what the facility map numbers mean and how near real-time and further coordination requests differ. Test yourself with the free Part 107 practice test, then review the airspace topic page and the Part 107 key numbers. For full lessons on airspace and authorizations, chart practice and timed mock exams, Part 107 Complete is a one-time $39.

Questions people ask

What does LAANC stand for?

Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability. It is a collaboration between the FAA and industry that gives drone pilots access to controlled airspace at or below 400 feet.

How far ahead can I apply through LAANC?

The FAA says LAANC requests may be submitted up to 90 days ahead, but for near real-time approval its instructions say to apply on the date you wish to fly. Further coordination requests, for altitudes above the UAS Facility Map value, must go in no later than 72 hours before the planned start.

Does a UAS Facility Map altitude mean I can fly there?

No. The FAA says the maps do not authorize operations. They show where authorization may be granted without extra safety analysis, and you must still apply through LAANC or FAADroneZone.

What if the airport near my site doesn't offer LAANC?

Apply through FAADroneZone. Requests there are processed manually, and the FAA says processing has historically taken up to eight weeks, so apply early.

Do I have to call the tower after LAANC approves my flight?

Not unless the authorization specifically asks you to. The FAA says drone pilots do not need to notify the tower before they fly unless the authorization requests it.