The Bill published by the Ministry of Internal Administration establishes places of prohibition, fixes limitation of timetables and amounts of fines to be applied

The details are contained in a bill approved Thursday 3rd January 2019 by the Council of Ministers that regulates the use of drones and establishes the rules of use in the national airspace.

According to the proposal, the flight of unmanned aircraft at a distance of less than 100 meters and overflight of educational centres, diplomatic premises and places of temporary restricted access is also prohibited.

The Government further defined that the flight will be prohibited at a distance of less than 2,000 meters and the overflight of warships or ships in the service of the State.

The bill, by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, also foresees that the security forces make use of the resources that will be able to stop the operation of drones, “when the aircraft are outside the regulatory conditions and it is not possible to locate the operator “.

In the proposal are provided for misconduct in case of disobedience to the defined operating rules, namely from 300 to 600 euros for minor administrative disputes and from 2,000 to 3,500 euros for very serious misconduct when practiced by natural persons.

Among the rules of operation, the Government establishes the minimum age of 16 to operate drones, with only day flights permitted, unless authorized by the National Civil Aviation Authority (ANAC).

There is also a system for monitoring alcohol influence of operators similar to that provided for drivers in the Road Code.

The bill also establishes that the operation of the drones in public space depends on the authorization of the ANAC and, in private places, of the owner, maintaining the obligation of requesting authorization for capturing aerial images to the National Aeronautical Authority.

The proposal provides for the creation of a single authorization mechanism processed through an electronic platform managed by ANAC, as well as the obligation of a certificate or license for operators, which depend on own training to be defined by ANAC.

The bill approved by the Council of Ministers establishes rules for the use of unmanned civil aircraft systems by delimiting the places where their use is free, the definition of places where their use is prohibited and places where the use depends on authorization .

According to the Government, the regulations aim to minimize the risks and give more safety in their use.

“As the entire authorization system, as with the registration of equipment, will be on an electronic platform, it will be possible to ensure greater control and better enforcement by the security forces in case of misuse of drones, since they will be able to consult the systems and the authorizations that will be accessible in the electronic platform “, considers the Executive.