Special use airspace and TFRs: what drone pilots need to know

Two Part 107 rules decide what special airspace means for your flight. Before entering a prohibited or restricted area you need permission from the agency that uses or controls it (14 CFR 107.45). And you must follow the temporary flight restriction rules in 14 CFR 91.137 to 91.145, plus the special security instructions in 99.7 (14 CFR 107.47). The rest of special use airspace, from warning areas to controlled firing areas, needs no Part 107 permission, but each one tells you something about the activity you may meet there. Here is a quick guide to each type, and to the restrictions you won't find printed on a chart.

What counts as special use airspace

It is airspace set aside because the activity inside has to be contained, because flights by outsiders need limits, or both (AIM 3-4-1). The study guide lists six usual kinds: prohibited, restricted and warning areas, alert areas, military operations areas (MOAs) and controlled firing areas (CFAs) (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 7). Only prohibited and restricted areas come from rulemaking; the other four, like national security areas, are nonregulatory (AIM 3-4-1).

Permanent areas, CFAs excepted, are charted with their controlling agency, altitudes and hours. Temporary restricted areas, temporary MOAs and CFAs don't appear at all (AIM 3-4-1). In other words, a chart never tells the whole story.

The two that need permission

• Prohibited areas are closed to aircraft altogether, for security or other national-welfare reasons (AIM 3-4-2). Charts label them P plus a number, such as P-40; Camp David and the National Mall in Washington, D.C. are two of them (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 7).
• Restricted areas limit flight rather than ban it, because of hazards that are unusual and often can't be seen, such as artillery, aerial gunnery or guided missiles. The AIM warns that going in without the using or controlling agency's authorization may be extremely hazardous (AIM 3-4-3). Charts label them R plus a number (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 8).

A drone needs that agency's permission for either one (14 CFR 107.45), and a waiver won't help: 107.45 isn't among the rules a Part 107 waiver can cover (14 CFR 107.205). To find out whom to ask, look at the special use airspace table on the sectional, which names the controlling agency (Chart Users' Guide, p. 20).

The four that call for caution

• Warning areas begin 3 nautical miles off the U.S. coast and extend outward. They hold activity that could endanger aircraft not involved in it, and they exist to alert those pilots (AIM 3-4-4).
• MOAs keep some kinds of military training apart from IFR traffic: think air combat tactics, intercepts, aerobatics, formation flying and low-level tactics. In an active MOA, the Department of Defense is authorized to fly faster than 250 knots even below 10,000 feet MSL. Because an MOA can switch between active and inactive often, the AIM suggests calling any flight service station no more than 100 miles away for its current status (AIM 3-4-5). MOAs have names, not numbers (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 8).
• Alert areas warn of a lot of training flights or an unusual kind of flying. Everyone there, whether taking part or just passing through, shares responsibility for avoiding collisions (AIM 3-4-6).
• CFAs hold activity that is halted the moment a spotter aircraft, radar or a ground lookout sees an aircraft that might be approaching. Since nobody has to change course for them, they aren't charted (AIM 3-4-7).

107.45 names only prohibited and restricted areas, so none of these four needs permission (14 CFR 107.45). The right-of-way rule applies everywhere, though: your drone must give way to all aircraft (14 CFR 107.37(a)). Fast military jets at low level leave little time for that, so keep an extra lookout in or near these areas.

Is the area active right now?

Ask the using or controlling agency, whose frequency is printed along the edges of the chart (AIM 3-4-9). The table of special use areas on the sectional also gives each area's altitudes and times of use, and the FAA won't put out a NOTAM just to announce those listed times (Chart Users' Guide, p. 20). If an area needs a NOTAM to activate, an airspace NOTAM is issued (AIM 3-4-9). The practical lesson: treat the printed times as real, NOTAM or not.

Military training routes and national security areas

Military training routes (MTRs) are where military aircraft practice low-level, high-speed flying, generally below 10,000 feet MSL and faster than 250 knots. A four-digit route number, as in VR1207, means no part of the route is above 1,500 feet AGL; a three-digit number means at least one part is. A route can be several miles wide on each side of the centerline drawn on the chart. Other aircraft aren't barred from MTRs, but the AIM asks for extreme vigilance near them (AIM 3-5-2).

National security areas guard ground sites that call for more security. The AIM asks pilots to stay out of them voluntarily, and when necessary, flight there can be temporarily banned under 14 CFR 99.7, with the ban published by NOTAM (AIM 3-4-8). Charts outline them with a broken magenta line (Chart Users' Guide, p. 18).

TFRs: restrictions that come and go

A temporary flight restriction (TFR) keeps aircraft, drones included, out of a defined area for a limited time unless they have permission. TFRs are published as NOTAMs, and the FAA's drone TFR page says to always check NOTAMs before you fly (FAA: drone TFRs). The rules that 107.47 points you to cover:

• Disasters and hazards: shielding people and property from a hazard tied to an incident on the ground, keeping disaster relief aircraft safe, and stopping sightseeing aircraft from crowding over an incident or event (14 CFR 91.137(a)).
• VIP movements: places the President, the Vice President or other public figures will visit or travel through (14 CFR 91.141).
• Space flight operations (14 CFR 91.143).
• Air shows and major sporting events: the NOTAM normally comes out at least 30 days beforehand, unless the FAA has good cause for less notice (14 CFR 91.145(f)).
• Special security instructions (14 CFR 99.7), which the FAA uses to limit drone flights over certain sites, military installations among them (AIM 11-4-6).

A TFR NOTAM opens with "FLIGHT RESTRICTIONS" and then gives the place, the times, the area in statute miles and the altitudes covered (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 10). When a TFR protects people and property or relief aircraft, its airspace normally goes no higher than 2,000 feet above the surface and no wider than a 3-nautical-mile radius (AIM 3-5-3). That still takes in any drone at 400 feet or below inside it.

Don't look for TFRs on your sectional: only the ones tied to national security are charted (Chart Users' Guide, p. 18). The FAA's TFR list, on the other hand, is updated in real time (FAA: drone TFRs).

Flying inside a TFR

It takes permission. You must work it out with the controlling agency the TFR names, and eligibility is usually limited to public safety agencies, first responders and organizations such as the media (FAA: drone TFRs). The FAA's fast-track Special Governmental Interest (SGI) process is open to Part 107 pilots with a current certificate and to holders of a Certificate of Waiver or Authorization (FAA: drone TFRs). Breaking a TFR can bring anything from a warning or a fine to suspension or revocation of a certificate (FAA: drone TFRs), and getting in the way of public safety or emergency aircraft can mean a civil penalty of as much as $20,000 for each violation (AIM 11-8-3).

Your preflight check

Part 107 makes the local airspace and any flight restrictions part of every preflight assessment (14 CFR 107.49(a)(2)), and FAA guidance tells the remote pilot in command to check NOTAMs before each flight (AC 107-2A, para. 5.10.3). NOTAMs carry time-critical information that is temporary, or that wasn't known early enough to print on a chart (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 13). One can go out as much as 7 days before the activity, and it is cancelled once the information is charted or things return to normal. You can look NOTAMs up on the FAA's NOTAM Search or ask a flight service station (AIM 5-1-3).

An airspace authorization doesn't replace any of this. The FAA says LAANC provides airspace authorizations only, so you still check NOTAMs and follow every airspace restriction (FAA: LAANC). Our LAANC guide explains how authorizations work, and how to read a sectional chart shows where special use airspace appears on the chart.

Practice these questions

The special use area types are easy to mix up, so practice telling them apart. Start with the free Part 107 practice test, review the airspace topic page and the Part 107 glossary, and try our chart questions. For full lessons on special use airspace, TFRs and NOTAMs with worked examples and timed mock exams, Part 107 Complete is a one-time $39.

Questions people ask

Do I need permission to fly a drone in a military operations area?

Not under Part 107. 14 CFR 107.45 requires permission only for prohibited and restricted areas. Military aircraft may fly faster than 250 knots below 10,000 feet MSL in an active MOA, so check its status and keep a careful lookout.

Who gives permission to fly in a restricted area?

The using or controlling agency for that area, under 14 CFR 107.45. The special use airspace table on the sectional chart lists the controlling agency.

Are TFRs shown on sectional charts?

Only TFRs relating to national security are charted. Check NOTAMs and the FAA TFR list before every flight for the rest.

Can a Part 107 pilot fly inside a TFR?

Only after coordinating with the controlling agency named in the TFR. Usually only public safety agencies, first responders and organizations such as the media are eligible, and they can apply through the FAA Special Governmental Interest process.