Though the European Commission strives for a harmonization of regulations for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS), the individual EU member states currently apply diverse laws.

In this series, we take a closer look at the regulations and laws on the usage of UAVs in the different European countries.

Part 1: France

The French Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy published guidelines on the use of drones in France.

The ten main rules for private use are:

1. Do not fly over people.
2. The maximum flight altitude is 150 meters.
3. Fly only during daytime and never lose sight of the UAV.
4. Do not fly in urban or congested areas.
5. Do not fly in restricted areas such as airports.
6. Do not fly over protected sites.
7. Always respect people’s privacy.
8. Always ask for consent of the people concerned prior to broadcasting footage or photos.
9. Check terms of your insurance before flying UAV’s.
10. In doubt, ask for information.

For commercial purposes operators need to be French residents, owning a pilot license (PPL) for planes, helicopters or gliders.

There are seven different categories for drones, mainly depending on their mass, and four types of flight scenarios areas that are defined as follows:

Recently, the French Parliament passed a law that drones weighing more than 800g have to be registered and equipped with a device of sound and bright description.

No-Fly Zones in France (Source: AIP Drones)