173 United Arab Emirates
Three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and black with a wider vertical red band on the hoist side. The flag incorporates all four Pan-Arab colors, which in this case represent fertility (green), neutrality (white), petroleum resources (black), and unity (red). Red was the traditional color incorporated into all flags of the emirates before their unification.
Flag courtesy of the CIA World Factbook
Map courtesy of the CIA World Factbook
Abu Dhabi camel.
Photo courtesy of the CIA World Factbook
Government
According to Britannica, the highest governmental authority is the Federal Supreme Council, which is composed of the quasi-hereditary rulers of the seven emirates. The president and vice president of the federation are elected for five-year terms by the Supreme Council from among its members. The president appoints a prime minister and a cabinet. The unicameral legislature, the Federal National Council, is an advisory body made up of 40 members appointed by the individual emirates for two-year terms. A provisional constitution was ratified in 1971 and was made permanent in 1996 by the Supreme Council.
The United Arab Emirates has a federal system of government, and any powers not assigned to the federal government by the constitution devolve to the constituent emirates. Generally, the distribution of power within the federal system is similar to those in other such systems—for example, the federation government administers foreign policy, determines broad economic policy, and runs the social welfare system—and a significant amount of power is exercised at the individual emirate level, notably in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
The constitution calls for a legal code based on Sharīʿah (Islamic law). In practice, the judiciary blends Western and Islamic legal principles. At the federal level the judicial branch consists of the Union Supreme Court and several courts of first instance: the former deals with emirate-federal or inter-emirate disputes and crimes against the state, and the latter cover administrative, commercial, and civil disputes between individuals and the federal government. Other legal matters are left to local judicial bodies.
Civil / National Aviation Authority (CAA/NAA)
The General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) was created in 1996 by Federal Cabinet Decree (Law 4) to regulate Civil Aviation and provide designated services with observance to aviation safety and security to strengthen the aviation industry within the UAE and its upper space. Since 1996 the Authority has made considerable progress and embarked on bold new initiatives to provide a better service to its civil aviation clients and stakeholders. Since 1996 many new projects and innovations have been initiated with generally excellent result, such as modernization of the air traffic control center program, Radar equipments and establishing of new facilities to serve the growth of the civil aviation within the UAE.
Airspace
SkyVector – Google Maps – ADS-B Exchange
ICAO countries publish an Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP). This document is divided into three parts: General (GEN), En Route (ENR) and Aerodromes (AD). ENR 1.4 details the types of airspace classes they chose to adopt from classes A through G. UAE AIP – requires login
Drone Regulations
There’s an APP for that!
DUBAI, 18th April, 2023 (WAM) – Mohammed bin Rashid issues law amending certain articles of law regulating drone activity in Dubai
In his capacity as the Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister, issued Law No. (10) of 2023 amending certain articles of Law No. (4) of 2020 that regulate the use of drones in Dubai, with the aim of enhancing safety standards.
The new law amends article Nos. (7), (20), (21), and (23) of Law No. (4) of 2020 and replaces them with new articles that outline approved criteria for the design and operation of “Drone Airports” in Dubai. Additionally, the new law also mandates the development of necessary infrastructure and provision of fuel and power supply for these airports.
The new law stipulates that the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority (DCAA), in coordination with other relevant authorities in Dubai, is responsible for several tasks. These include establishing and endorsing standards and criteria that are necessary for Drone Airports, approving engineering designs for both government and non-governmental use, as well as overseeing the implementation of these designs and plans for stations, facilities, and infrastructure.
DCAA is also mandated to issue completion certificates, as long as the designs and plans comply with the emirate’s adopted urban planning requirements and traffic and transportation control procedures. The DCAA is also responsible for setting the standards and criteria for pre-qualifying and certifying contractors and consultants involved in constructing Drone Airports and their associated stations, facilities, and infrastructure.
The Dubai Aviation Engineering Projects (DAEP), in partnership with DCAA and other relevant authorities, is responsible for a range of tasks within the boundaries of the Dubai Aviation City, as defined by Law No. (10) of 2015. These responsibilities include designing Drone Airports, stations, and infrastructure for government use, as well as overseeing their implementation in compliance with international standards.
According to the amended law, DAEP is also tasked with approving engineering designs of Drone Airports for non-government use; prescribing the standards and criteria for the pre-qualification and certification of contractors and consultants engaged in the construction of Drone Airports and their associated stations, facilities, and infrastructure, among others.
The new law prohibits any individual from constructing infrastructure related to the operation of drones or Drone Airports, or supplying fuel for drones without obtaining a license from the DCAA. The license will be issued in coordination with relevant entities and in accordance with the conditions and regulations adopted by the authority in this regard.
Any provisions in other legislations that may conflict with the new law will be considered null and void. The new law will come into effect from the date of its publication in the Official Gazette.
CAR-UAC – UA Commercial and Governmental Ops – Issue 2
CAR-UAC – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) COMMERCIAL AND GOVERNMENTAL OPERATIONS – ISSUE 02
UAC.001 Abbreviations and Definitions
For the purposes of this CAR, the following abbreviations and definitions apply:
(a) Abbreviations
(1) AMC: Acceptable Means of Compliance
(2) GCAA: General Civil Aviation Authority
(3) LAA: Local Appropriate Authority
(4) LoC: Letter of Conformity
(5) MOIAT: Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology
(6) UA: Unmanned Aircraft
(7) UOA:UA Operator Authorization
(8) VLOS: Visual Line of Sight
(b) Definitions
(1) Acceptable Means of Compliance: Are standards adopted by the GCAA to illustrate means to establish compliance with the CAR’s. An entity/or a person wishing not to comply with the AMC must comply using other means accepted by the Authority.
Note: Alternative means of compliance are those that propose an alternative to an existing AMC or those that propose new means to establish compliance with the CAR’s for which no associated AMC have been adopted by the GCAA.
(2) Airspace Approval: An Authorization issued by the GCAA or LAA, as the case, to conduct an UA flight operation at specific time and on a specific location and route.
(3) Commercial operations: UA operation conducted by operator for commercial purpose, which receives remuneration in return for its service.
(4) Governmental operations: UA operation conducted by government entity, for the purpose of serving its own project/task.
(5) Local Appropriate Authority: The local authority responsible with regards to the civil aviation affairs in the relevant Emirate.
(6) Operator: An operator engaged in the operation of Unmanned Aircraft for commercial and governmental purposes only.
(7) Special operation approval: special approval issued by the GCAA or LAA, as the case, to conduct a Unmanned Aircraft flight operation exceeding operation limitation.
(8) UA Operator Authorization: is a document issued by GCAA that authorize the operator to conduct UA operation for the registered purpose. This document include list of authorized UAS
(9) UA Pilot: means a natural person responsible for safely conducting the flight of a UA by operating its flight controls, either manually or, when the UA flies automatically, by monitoring its course and remaining able to intervene and change its course at any time.
(10) Unmanned Aircraft (UA): An aircraft operated with no pilot on board. An UA may be remotely piloted or autonomously flown.
Note: UA includes a broad spectrum of aircraft, from drones, and model radio controlled aircraft, to highly complex remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) and highly automated or autonomous UA.
(11) VLOS operation: means a type of UAS operation in which, the remote pilot is able to maintain continuous unaided visual contact with the unmanned aircraft, allowing the remote pilot to control the flight path of the unmanned aircraft in relation to other aircraft, people and obstacles for the purpose of avoiding collisions.
LAA of each emirate is the authority responsible for authorization, approval and oversight of the UA operations performed within its territory. If there is no LAA in a specific emirate or the LAA of this emirate is not performing these tasks, the GCAA will be the sole responsible for approval and oversight of the UA operations performed within this emirate.
NOTE: If the operator is based in an emirate; it must communicate and obtain required authorization and permission from LAA of relevant Emirate. Otherwise the operator shall communicate and obtain required authorization and permission from GCAA.
(a) This CAR prescribes the requirements to be met by operators operating UA for commercial and governmental purposes.
(b) This CAR does not apply to:
(1) UA operated by military or law enforcement agencies (state UA);
(2) UA intended for carriage of passengers;
Note: for Recreational, experimentation, event operator, demonstration, or carriage of passengers, refer to:
– CAR UAR – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT RECREATIONAL FLIGHT
– CAR UAEX – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) EXPERIMENTATION OPERATION
– CAR UAEV – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) EVENT OPERATION
– CAR UAD – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) DEMONSTRATION OPERATION
– CAR-UAM – URBAN AIR MOBILITY OPERATIONS
Commercial Operations may include but not limited to:
Aerial Photography, Survey, Media, Agricultural, Advertisement, Inspection, Monitoring, aerial mapping.
(a) No operator shall perform commercial UA operations without a valid UA Operator Authorization (UOA) issued by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(b) The application for UOA shall be made in a form and manner established by the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(c) Only UAE based operator can be granted UOA. However, the GCAA or LAA may authorize a UAE based operator to contract a non-UAE based UA operator if there is no UAE UA operator capable of performing the requested mission with acceptable justification
(d) In such case, the UAE based operator is accountable for the contracted non-UAE based UA Operator.
(e) In order to obtain UOA the operator shall apply through GCAA or LAA registration platform.
(f) Prior to applying for UOA the applicant shall obtain Letter of Conformity (LoC) for each UA from Ministry of Industry Advanced Technology (MOIAT) e-service.
The required process and documents are as following for the non-UAE based UA Operator:
(a) Invitation letter from government entity or copy of contract/agreement with government entity.
(b) A description of the proposed operation in company letterhead addressed to GCAA or LAA, as the case, and signed by an authorized representative together with a statement of compliance with GCAA or LAA requirements, as the case. This document must also list the unmanned aircraft type with serial number, color and mass in KG.
(c) A copy of company trade license (or equivalent).
(d) Passport copy of the applicant.
The operator shall appoint an accountable person who has corporate authority and fund access for ensuring compliance with this CAR and relevant legislation and regulation:
(a) The operator shall ensure that every UA operation is conducted in accordance with this CAR, and applicable laws (including the Civil Aviation Law of the UAE, Federal Decree Law No. (26) of 2022), and any relevant publication issued by LAA.
(b) The operator shall ensure that all UA are registered and appropriately insured before commencement of any operation.
(c) The operator shall notify the GCAA or LAA, as the case, in sufficient time for any changes concerning the accountable person, operator name, address or contact details, type of UA, fleet size or any change to the type of operations prior to implementing the change.
(d) The operator shall ensure that all UA instruments and equipment required for safe operation, are available and serviceable and maintained in accordance with the manufacturer and operator’s maintenance instructions.
(e) The operator shall ensure UA Pilot is competent to perform the intended operation and possess the skills and the knowledge about law, regulations and procedures.
(f) The operator shall ensure that UA(s) are stored securely, and released for pilots use in a controlled and documented manner.
(g) The operator shall establish and implement procedures to control the UA operation records. Records shall be stored in a manner that ensures protection from damage, alteration and theft. Records shall be retained for at least 24 months.
(h) In addition to the flying condition stipulated in “My Drone Hub” mobile application and UOA certificate, the operator shall establish and implement procedures for the safe operation including the following:
(1) The UA Pilot shall give way to other UA and maintain safe distance from each other and from any manned aircraft at all times and land the UA safely whenever hearing or sighting any manned aircraft in close proximity to the UA operation
(2) The UA Pilot shall ensure that operations do not compromise the privacy of legal and natural person and do not cause injury or damage to natural person and properties.
(3) The UA Pilot shall ensure Minimum Safe Distance from any persons and fixed or mobile objects and shall maintain a safe height from crowds.
(4) The UA pilot shall ensure that the UA is in a safe operating condition for the intended flight.
(5) Procedures required to comply with this CAR or any relevant publication issued by LAA, including procedure to deal with emergency and abnormal situation shall be established.
(i) The following activities are prohibited unless permission obtained from GCAA or LAA or government entities, as the case:
(1) Any modification to the UA or its component or system which may affect its initial functionality and specification as per obtained LoC from MOIAT
Records should include, but not limited to the following:
(a) Flight mission logs containing:
(1) Date of the flight
(2) Route information/GPS coordinates
(3) Time of start and End of Flight
(4) Name of Pilot
(5) Observations / incidents/ equipment failure
(b) GCAA or LAA Airspace Approval, if applicable
(c) UA details: UA model, UA serial number, registration, UA weight, UA main color.
(d) UA Pilots training certificate and license.
The procedures should be easily accessible to concerned staff and should state clear roles and responsibilities of the operator and the UA Pilot.
No one shall operate UA in UAE airspace without complying with the following requirements:
(a) being 18 years minimum unless otherwise accepted by the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(b) having successfully complete UA training provided by UA training operator approved by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(c) being UAE resident.
No one shall operate UA in UAE airspace without a pilot license issued by GCAA or LAA, as the case. The following are the requirements to obtain a GCAA UA license, but not limited to:
(a) The applicant shall be of 18 years minimum unless otherwise accepted by the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(b) The applicant shall successfully complete UA training provided by UA training operator approved by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(c) The applicant shall be UAE resident.
(a) The UA operator shall obtain an UA Airspace Approval prior to any UA operation, unless the flight is intended to be conducted within:
(1) Interior Building space: Airspace inside a building, or within the interior area of a closed stadium or a facility.
(2) Exterior Building Airspace: Airspace within 10 meters off the facade or 5 meters above the roof of a building provided the building is located outside airports boundaries/fences and further boundaries defined by Air Navigation Service Provider. If the building is associated with heliport/vertiport then a prior approval from the heliport operator shall be obtained.
(3) Drone Fly Zone: Up to date UA fly zone as indicated in the map guidance in “My Drone Hub” mobile application.
(b) The following airspace approval limitations shall apply to any UA operation, unless a special operation approval is issued by the GCAA or LAA, as the case:
(1) Operations shall be limited to day time;
(2) Operations shall be limited to VLOS operations;
(3) Operations shall be limited to 400 ft. height AGL;
(4) Operations shall be limited to UA with a maximum take-off mass of 25kg; and
(5) No Operation shall be conducted for Goods delivery
(6) No Dangerous Goods shall be transported by air
(a) Any UA Airspace Approval Application should be submitted through the GCAA or LAA E-Services, as the case.
(b) Application should be provided 2 weeks minimum before the intended operation/flight.
(c) All UOA holders have to comply with GCAA or LAA rules and conditions, as the case.
In order to obtain special operation approval, the operator should submit a Specific Operations Risk Assessment (SORA) to GCAA or LAA, as the case, to evaluate and authorize the operations. Through SORA the operator should demonstrate that the operation can be conducted with an acceptable level of safety.
(a) The operators shall ensure compliance with any security requirement mandated by the GCAA, LAA, or any other security agencies.
(b) The use of aerial photographic apparatus installed on the UA shall not be permitted without a prior authorization from the Security Sector within the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(a) The operator shall report to the GCAA, any accident and serious incident, through the following hotline: +971506414667 and E-mail: aai@gcaa.gov.ae. Accidents shall be also reported to the local Emirate Police.
(b) The operator shall report to LAA, any accident and serious incident, through applicable channel.
(c) The report shall contain all pertinent information, known to the operator, about the accident or serious incident. Reports shall be made within 3 hours from the accident/ serious incident occurrence.
(d) Where relevant, the operator shall produce a follow-up report to provide details of actions it intends to take to prevent similar occurrences in the future.
(e) The operator shall report occurrences to the GCAA through the ROSI system.
The following list while not exhaustive includes types of occurrences involving UA Operations, which should be reported to the GCAA (by email to aai@gcaa.gov.ae) and LAA:
(a) Crashes
(b) Interferences with signal or control of UA.
(c) Near miss with a manned aircraft or other UA;
d) Collisions with other objects;
e) Operation which results in a public nuisance.
f) Operations out of the area assigned for UA operation.
g) A serious or fatal injury (third parties and own personnel)
(h) UA lost while operation.
The operator should comply with AMC-22 “Incident Reporting”.
(a) The UA Operator Authorization (UOA) shall be valid for one year and its validity is subject to:
(1) The operator remaining in compliance with the applicable requirements and conditions stipulated in the authorization and in this CAR or any relevant publication issued by LAA, as the case.
(2) The validity of GCAA or LAA Security Clearance, as the case.
(3) The GCAA or LAA, as the case, is granted access, at any time, to the operator’s facility, equipment, document, records, data, procedures or any other material relevant to its activity.
(4) The UOA not being surrendered, suspended or revoked.
(b) The UA Operator Authorization (UOA) may be renewed upon to operator’s demand.
Upon obtaining UOA; the operator will be subject to the GCAA or LAA, as the case, surveillance program over the scope, requirement and provision promulgated in this CAR. Any Non-compliance with this regulation will result in findings which are divided into three levels.
Finding Classification and Definitions:
During oversight inspection and audit, if the evidence indicates that the individual and/or operators has violated the provision of the relevant federal decree or civil aviation law or regulation or relevant LAA publication, an enforcement action decision and deterrent action shall be applied against the violator.
If violation and non-compliance detected, the operator may be subject to one of the following deterrent actions:
(a) An Administrative action may be taken where an authorized operator violates a provision of this regulation. Administrative action can be:
– Oral Counseling
– Warning Letter
– Restriction of privilege
– Suspension
– Revocation
– Detention, confiscate or Grounding of Unmanned Aircraft
(b) A Judicial action involves the prosecution of an alleged offender in Civil Court. This usually involves contraventions under the Federal Decree Law (26) 2022.
Appeal process initiated to allow applicant (individual /operator) who feels aggrieved by a decision (Administrative and/or Judicial action) made against them by the GCAA, the right to apply for an appeal against that decision.
Note: The scope of this process excludes any appeal related to aviation security (AVSEC)
The applicant (individual /operator may appeal within 30 days from the date received the Notice of Law Enforcement Action). Guidance to the appeal process can be found in GCAA website.
CAR-UAD – UA Demonstration Ops – Issue 2
CAR-UAD – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) DEMONSTRATION OPERATIONS – ISSUE 02
For the purposes of this Chapter, the following abbreviations and definitions apply:
(a) Abbreviations
(1) AMC: Acceptable Means of Compliance
(2) GCAA: General Civil Aviation Authority
(3) LAA: Local Appropriate Authority
(4) LoC: Letter of Conformity
(5) MOIAT: Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology
(6) UA:UnmannedAircraft
(7) UOA: UA Operator Authorization
(8) VLOS: Visual Line of Sight
(b) Definitions
(1) Acceptable Means of Compliance: Are standards adopted by the GCAA to illustrate means to establish compliance with the CAR’s. An entity/or a person wishing not to comply with the AMC must comply using other means accepted by the Authority.
Note: Alternative means of compliance are those that propose an alternative to an existing AMC or those that propose new means to establish compliance with the CAR’s for which no associated AMC have been adopted by the GCAA.
(2) Airspace Approval: An Authorization issued by the GCAA or LAA, as the case, to conduct an UA flight operation at specific time and on a specific location and route.
(3) Demonstration Operation: A special flight may be used when conducting customer demonstration flights of a new production aircraft and or other business related purposes.
(4) Local Appropriate Authority: The local authority responsible with regards to the civil aviation affairs in the relevant Emirate.
(5) Operator: An operator engaged in the operation of UA for Demonstration purposes only.
(6) Special operation approval: special approval issued by the GCAA or LAA, as the case, to conduct an Unmanned Aircraft flight operation exceeding operation limitation.
(7) UA Operator Authorization: is a document issued by GCAA that authorizes the operator to conduct UA operation for the registered purpose. This document include list of authorized UAS.
(8) UA Pilot: means a natural person responsible for safely conducting the flight of a UA by operating its flight controls, either manually or, when the UA flies automatically, by monitoring its course and remaining able to intervene and change its course at any time.
(9) Unmanned Aircraft (UA): An aircraft operated with no pilot onboard. An UA may be remotely piloted or autonomously flown.
Note: UA includes a broad spectrum of aircraft, from drones, and model radio controlled aircraft, to highly complex remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) and highly automated or autonomous UA.
(10) VLOS operation: means a type of UAS operation in which, the remote pilot is able to maintain continuous unaided visual contact with the unmanned aircraft, allowing the remote pilot to control the flight path of the unmanned aircraft in relation to other aircraft, people and obstacles for the purpose of avoiding collisions.
LAA of each emirate is the authority responsible for authorization, approval and oversight of the UA operations performed within its territory. If there is no LAA in a specific emirate or the LAA of this emirate is not performing these tasks, the GCAA will be the sole responsible for approval and oversight of the UA operations performed within this emirate.
NOTE: If the operator is based in an emirate; it must communicate and obtain required authorization and permission from LAA of relevant Emirate. Otherwise the operator shall communicate and obtain required authorization and permission from GCAA.
(a) This CAR prescribes the requirements to be met by operators operating UA for Demonstration purposes. (b) This CAR does not apply to:
(1) UA operated by military or law enforcement and security agencies (state UA)
(2) UA intended for carriage of passengers.
Note: for Recreational, commercial and governmental, experimentation, event operator, or carriage of passengers, refer to:
– CAR UAR- UNMANNED AIRCRAFT RECREATIONAL FLIGHT
– CAR UAC- UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) COMMERCIAL & GOVERNMENTAL OPERATIONS
– CAR UAEX – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) EXPERIMENTATION OPERATIONS
– CAR UAEV – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) EVENT OPERATIONS
– CAR-UAM – URBAN AIR MOBILITY OPERATIONS
Demonstration Operations may include but not limited to, capability for marketing purposes, UA prototype testing, piloting for goods delivery service.
(a) No operator shall perform Demonstration UA operation without a valid UA Operator Authorization (UOA) issued by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(b) The application for UOA shall be made in a form and manner established by the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(c) Only UAE based operator can be granted UOA. However, the GCAA or LAA may authorize a UAE based operator to contract a non-UAE based UA Operator if there is no UAE UA operator capable of performing the requested mission with acceptable Justification.
(d) In such case, the UAE based operator is accountable for the contracted non-UAE based UA Operator.
(e) In order to obtain UOA the operator has to apply through GCAA or LAA registration platform.
(f) Prior to applying for UOA the applicant shall obtain Letter of Conformity (LoC) for each UA from Ministry of Industry Advanced Technology (MOIAT) e-service.
The required process and documents are as following for the non-UAE based UA Operator:
(a) Invitation letter from government entity or copy of contract/agreement with government entity.
(b) A description of the proposed operation in company letterhead addressed to GCAA or LAA, as the case, and signed by an authorized representative together with a statement of compliance with GCAA or LAA requirements, as the case. This document must also list the unmanned aircraft type with serial number, color and mass in KG.
(c) A copy of company trade license (or equivalent).
(d) Passport copy of the applicant.
The operator shall appoint an accountable person who has corporate authority and fund access for ensuring compliance with this CAR and relevant legislation and regulation:
(a) The operator shall ensure that every UA operation is conducted in accordance with this CAR, and applicable laws (including the Civil Aviation Law of the UAE, Federal Decree Law No. (26) of 2022), and any relevant publication issued by LAA.
(b) The operator shall ensure that all UA are registered and appropriately insured before commencement of any operation.
(c) The operator shall notify the GCAA or LAA, as the case, in sufficient time for any changes concerning the accountable person, operator name, address or contact details, type of UA, fleet size or any change to the type of operations prior to implementing the change.
(d) The operator shall ensure that all UA instruments and equipment required for safe operation, are available and serviceable and maintained in accordance with the manufacturer and operator’s maintenance instructions.
(e) The operator shall ensure UA Pilot is competent to perform the intended operation and possess the skills and the knowledge about law, regulations and procedures.
(f) The operator shall establish and implement procedures for the safe operation including the following:
(1) The UA Pilot shall ensure Minimum UA Safe Distance from any persons and fixed or mobile objects. The Minimum Safety Distance shall not be less than 50 meters unless prior authorization has been obtained from the GCAA or LAA, as the case;
(2) Ensure that the UA is in a safe operating condition for the intended flight.
(3) Adhere to the conditions stipulated in flying zone map in “My Drone Hub” mobile application
(g) The following activities are prohibited unless permission obtained from GCAA or LAA or government entities, as the case:
(1) Any modification to the UA or its component or system which may affect its initial functionality and specification as per obtained LoC from MOIAT
No one shall fly UA in UAE airspace without complying with the following requirements :
(a) being 18 years minimum unless otherwise accepted by the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(b) having successfully complete UA training provided by UA training operator approved by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(c) being UAE resident.
No one shall fly UA in UAE airspace without a pilot license issued by GCAA or LAA, as the case. The following are the requirements to obtain a GCAA UA license, but not limited to:
(a) The applicant shall be of 18 years minimum unless otherwise accepted by the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(b) The applicant shall successfully complete UA training provided by UA training operator approved by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(c) The applicant shall be UAE resident.
(a) The UA operator shall obtain an UA Airspace Approval prior to any UA operation, unless the flight is intended to be conducted within:
(1) Interior Building space: Airspace inside a building, or within the interior area of a closed stadium or a facility.
(2) Exterior Building Airspace: Airspace within 10 meters off the facade or 5 meters above the roof of a building provided the building is located outside airports boundaries/fences and further boundaries defined by Air Navigation Service Provider. If the building is associated with heliport then a prior approval from the heliport operator shall be obtained.
(3) Drone Fly Zone: Up to date UA fly zone as indicated in the map guidance in “My Drone Hub” mobile application.
(b) Following airspace approval limitations shall apply to any UA operation, unless a special operation approval is issued by the GCAA or LAA, as the case
(1) Operations shall be limited to day time;
(2) Operations shall be limited to VLOS operations;
(3) Operations shall be limited to 400 ft. height AGL;
(4) Operations shall be limited to UA with a maximum take-off mass of 25kg;
(5) No Dangerous Good shall be transported by air.
(a) Any UA Airspace Approval Application should be submitted through the GCAA or LAA E-Services, as the case.
(b) Application should be provided 2 weeks minimum before the intended operation/flight.
(c) All UOA holders have to comply with GCAA and LAA rules and conditions, as the case.
In order to obtain special operation approval, the operator should submit a Specific Operations Risk Assessment (SORA) to GCAA or LAA, as the case, to evaluate and authorize the operations. Through SORA the operator should demonstrate that the operation can be conducted with an acceptable level of safety.
(a) The operator shall ensure compliance with any security requirement mandated by the GCAA, LAA, or any other security agencies.
(b) The use of aerial photographic apparatus installed on the UA shall not be permitted without a prior authorization from the Security Sector within the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(a) The operator shall report to the GCAA, any accident and serious incident, through the following hotline: +971506414667 and E-mail: aai@gcaa.gov.ae. Accidents shall be also reported to the local Emirate Police.
(b) The operator shall report to LAA, any accident and serious incident, through applicable channel.
(c) The report shall contain all pertinent information, known to the operator, about the accident or serious incident. Reports shall be made within 3 hours from the accident/ serious incident occurrence.
(d) Where relevant, the operator shall produce a follow-up report to provide details of actions it intends to take to prevent similar occurrences in the future.
(e) The operator shall report occurrences to the GCAA through the ROSI system.
The following list while not exhaustive includes types of occurrences involving UA Operations, which shall be reported to the GCAA (by email to aai@gcaa.gov.ae) and LAA:
(a) Crashes
(b) Interferences in signal or control of UA.
(c) Near miss with a manned aircraft or other UA;
(d) Collisions with other objects;
(e) Operation which results in a public nuisance.
(f) Operations out of the area assigned for UA operation.
(g) A serious or fatal injury (third parties and own personnel)
(h) UA lost while in operation.
(a) The UA Operator Authorization (UOA) shall be granted as one off operation authorization for specific time, as accepted by the GCAA or LAA as the case.
(1) The operator remaining in compliance with the applicable requirements and conditions stipulated in the authorization and in this CAR or any relevant publication issued by LAA, as the case.
(2) The validity of GCAA or LAA Security Clearance, as the case.
(3) The GCAA or LAA, as the case, is granted access, at any time, to the operator’s facility, equipment, document, records, data, procedures or any other material relevant to its activity.
(4) The UOA not being surrendered, suspended or revoked.
Upon obtaining UOA; the operator will be subject to the GCAA or LAA, as the case, surveillance program over the scope, requirement and provision promulgated in this CAR. Any Non-compliance with this regulation will result in findings which are divided into three levels.
During oversight inspection and audit, if the evidence indicates that the individual and/or operators has violated the of the relevant federal decree or civil aviation law or regulation or relevant LAA publication, an enforcement action decision and deterrent action shall be applied against the violator.
If violation and non-compliance detected, the operator may be subject to one of the following deterrent actions:
(a) An Administrative action may be taken where an authorized operator violates a provision of this regulation.
Administrative action can be:
– Oral Counseling
– Warning Letter
– Restriction of privilege
– Suspension
– Revocation
– Detention, confiscate or Grounding of Unmanned Aircraft
(b) A Judicial action involves the prosecution of an alleged offender in Civil Court. This usually involves contraventions under the Federal Decree Law (26) 2022.
Appeal process initiated to allow applicant (individual /operator) who feels aggrieved by a decision (Administrative and/or Judicial action) made against them by the GCAA, the right to apply for an appeal against that decision.
Note: The scope of this process excludes any appeal related to aviation security (AVSEC)
The applicant (individual /operator may appeal within 30 days from the date received the Notice of Law Enforcement Action). Guidance to the appeal process can be found in the GCAA website.
CAR-UAEV – UA Event Ops – Issue 2
CAR-UAEV – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) EVENT OPERATIONS – ISSUE 02
For the purposes of this CAR, the following abbreviations and definitions apply:
(a) Abbreviations
(1) AMC: Acceptable Means of Compliance
(2) GCAA: General Civil Aviation Authority
(3) LAA: Local Appropriate Authority
(4) LoC: Letter of Conformity
(5) MOIAT: Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology
(6) UA: Unmanned Aircraft
(7) UOA: UA Operator Authorization
(8) VLOS: Visual Line of Sight
(b) Definitions
(1) Acceptable Means of Compliance: Are standards adopted by the GCAA to illustrate means to establish compliance with the CAR’s. An entity/or a person wishing not to comply with the AMC must comply using other means accepted by the Authority.
Note: Alternative means of compliance are those that propose an alternative to an existing AMC or those that propose new means to establish compliance with the CAR’s for which no associated AMC have been adopted by the GCAA.
(2) Airspace Approval: An Authorization issued by the GCAA or LAA, as the case, to conduct an UA flight operation at specific time and on a specific location and route.
(3) Local Appropriate Authority: The local authority responsible with regards to the civil aviation affairs in the relevant Emirate.
(4) Operator: An organization engaged in the operation of UA for event organization purposes only.
(5) Special operation approval: special approval issued by the GCAA or LAA, as the case, to conduct an Unmanned Aircraft flight operation exceeding operation limitation.
(6) UA Event operations: Activities may include competitions that are held by organizations to award developers of novel UA technologies or drone flight show.
(7) UA Operator Authorization: is a document issued by GCAA that authorize the operator to conduct UA operation for the registered purpose. This document include list of authorized UAS.
(8) UA Pilot: means a natural person responsible for safely conducting the flight of a UA by operating its flight controls, either manually or, when the UA flies automatically, by monitoring its course and remaining able to intervene and change its course at any time.
(9) Unmanned Aircraft (UA): An aircraft operated with no pilot on board. An UA may be remotely piloted or autonomously flown.
Note: UA includes a broad spectrum of aircraft, from drones, and model radio controlled aircraft, to highly complex remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) and highly automated or autonomous UA.
(10) VLOS operation: means a type of UAS operation in which, the remote pilot is able to maintain continuous unaided visual contact with the unmanned aircraft, allowing the remote pilot to control the flight path of the unmanned aircraft in relation to other aircraft, people and obstacles for the purpose of avoiding collisions.
LAA of each emirate is the authority responsible for authorization, approval and oversight of the UA operations performed within its territory. If there is no LAA in a specific emirate or the LAA of this emirate is not performing these tasks, the GCAA will be the sole responsible for approval and oversight of the UA operations performed within this emirate.
NOTE: If the operator is based in an emirate; it must communicate and obtain required authorization and permission from LAA of relevant Emirate. Otherwise the operator shall communicate and obtain required authorization and permission from GCAA.
(a) This CAR prescribes the requirements to be met by operator operating UA for organizing events purposes.
(b) This CAR does not apply to:
(1) UA operated by military or law enforcement agencies (state UA).
(2) UA intended for carriage of passengers.
(3) UA operation for Goods delivery
Note: for Recreational, commercial & governmental, demonstration, experimentation, or carriage of passengers, refer to:
– CAR UAR- UNMANNED AIRCRAFT RECREATIONAL FLIGHT
– CAR UAC- UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) COMMERCIAL & GOVERNMENTAL OPERATIONS
– CAR UAD – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) DEMONSTRATION OPERATIONS
– CAR UAEX – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) EXPERIMENTATION OPERATIONS
– CAR-UAM – URBAN AIR MOBILITY OPERATIONS
(a) No operator shall organize UA operations event without a valid UA Operator Authorization (UOA) issued by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(b) The application for UOA shall be made in a form and manner established by the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(c) In order to obtain UOA the operator shall apply through GCAA or LAA registration platform.
(d) Prior to applying for UOA the operator shall obtain Letter of Conformity (LoC) for each UA from Ministry of Industry Advanced Technology (MOIAT) e-service.
The operator shall appoint an accountable person who has corporate authority and fund access for ensuring compliance with this CAR and relevant legislation and regulation:
(a) The operator shall ensure that every UA operation is conducted in accordance with this CAR, and applicable laws (including the Civil Aviation Law of the UAE, Federal Decree Law No. (26) of 2022), and any relevant publication issued by LAA.
(a) The operator shall ensure that all UA are registered appropriately insured before commencement of any operation.
(b) The operator shall notify the GCAA or LAA, as the case, in sufficient time for any changes concerning the accountable person, operator name, address or contact details, type of UA, fleet size or any change to the type of operations prior to implementing the change.
(c) The operator shall ensure that UA Pilots are competent to perform the intended operation possessing the skills and the knowledge about law, regulations and procedures.
(d) The operator shall ensure UA Pilot is competent to perform the intended operation and possess the skills and the knowledge about law, regulations and procedures
(e) The operator shall ensure all UA pilots possess license issued by GCAA or LAA before they can operate under its UOA.
(f) The operator shall establish and implement procedures to control the UA operation records. Records shall be stored in a manner that ensures protection from damage, alteration and theft. Records shall be retained for at least 24 months.
Note: Records shall be stored in a manner that ensures protection from damage, alteration and theft.
(g) The following limitations shall apply to any UA operation:
(1) Operations shall be limited to day time;
(2) Operations shall be limited to VLOS operations;
(3) Operations shall be limited to 400 ft. height AGL;
(4) Operations shall be limited to UA with a maximum take-off mass of 5 kg; and
(5) No Operation shall be conducted for Goods delivery
(6) No Dangerous Goods shall be transported by air.
Records should include, but not limited to the following:
(a) The UA details: UA model, UA serial number, registration, UA weight, UA main color and Name of Pilot Note: the event organizer shall keep a record of the pilot passport details
(b) Date of the event
(c) Location of the event with coordinates
(d) Time of start and End of Flight of each UA flight operation
(e) Observations / incidents/ equipment failure in such a case.
(f) GCAA or LAA operation Approval, if applicable
(g) UA pilot training certificate and license.
No one shall fly UA in UAE airspace without complying with the following requirements:
(a) being 18 years minimum unless otherwise accepted by the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(b) having successfully complete UA training provided by UA training operator approved by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
- (c) being UAE resident.
No one shall fly UA in UAE airspace without a pilot license issued by GCAA or LAA, as the case. The following are the requirements to obtain a GCAA UA license, but not limited to:
(a) The applicant shall be of 18 years minimum unless otherwise accepted by the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(b) The applicant shall complete UA training provided by UA training organization approved by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(c) The applicant shall be UAE resident
The UA operator shall obtain an UA Airspace Approval prior to any UA operation, unless the flight is intended to be conducted within:
(a) Interior Building space: Airspace inside a building, or within the interior area of a closed stadium or a facility.
(b) Drone Fly Zone: Up to date UA fly zone as indicated in the map guidance in “My Drone Hub” mobile application.
(a) Any UA Airspace Approval Application should be submitted through the GCAA or LAA E-Services, as the case.
(b) Application should be provided 2 weeks minimum before the intended operation/flight.
(c) All UOA holders have to comply with GCAA and LAA rules and conditions, as the case.
(d) The operator may apply for long term operational approval for designated area “for example Event
centre” where the operator wishes to perform the event
(a) The operators shall ensure compliance with any security requirement mandated by the GCAA, LAA, or any other security agencies.
(b) The use of aerial photographic apparatus installed on the UA shall not be permitted without a prior authorization from the Security Sector within the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(a) The operator shall report to the GCAA, any accident and serious incident, through the following hotline: +971506414667 and E-mail: aai@gcaa.gov.ae. Accidents shall be also reported to the local Emirate Police.
(b) The operator shall report to LAA, any accident and serious incident, through applicable channel.
(c) The report shall contain all pertinent information, known to the operator, about the accident or serious incident. Reports shall be made within 3 hours from the accident/ serious incident occurrence.
(d) Where relevant, the operator shall produce a follow-up report to provide details of actions it intends to take to prevent similar occurrences in the future.
(e) The operator shall report occurrences to the GCAA though the ROSI system.
The following list while not exhaustive includes types of occurrences involving UA Operations, which should be reported to the GCAA (by email to aai@gcaa.gov.ae) and LAA:
(a) Crashes
(b) Interferences in signal or control of UA.
(c) near miss with a manned aircraft or other UA;
(d) Collisions with other objects;
(e) Operation which results in a public nuisance.
(f) Operations out of the area assigned for UA operation.
(g) A serious or fatal injury (third parties and own personnel)
(h) UA lost while operation.
The operator should comply with AMC-22 “Incident Reporting”.
(a) The UA Operator Authorization (UOA) shall be valid for one year and its validity is subject to:
(1) The operator remaining in compliance with the applicable requirements and conditions stipulated in the authorization and in this CAR or any relevant publication issued by LAA, as the case.
(2) The validity of GCAA or LAA Security Clearance, as the case.
(3) The GCAA or LAA, as the case, is granted access, at any time, to the operator’s facility, equipment, document, records, data, procedures or any other material relevant to its activity.
(4) The UOA not being surrendered, suspended or revoked.
(b) The UA Operator Authorization (UOA) may be renewed upon to operator’s demand.
Upon obtaining UOA; the operator will be subject to the GCAA or LAA, as the case, surveillance program over the scope, requirement and provision promulgated in this CAR. Any Non-compliance with this regulation will result in findings which are divided into three levels.
Finding Classification and Definitions:
During oversight inspection and audit, if the evidence indicates that the individual and/or organizations has violated the provision of the relevant federal decree or civil aviation law or GCAA regulation or relevant LAA publication, an enforcement action decision and deterrent action shall be applied against the violator.
If violation and non-compliance detected, the operator may be subject to one of the following deterrent actions:
1) An Administrative action may be taken where an authorized organization violate a provision of this regulation. Administrative action can be:
– Oral Counseling
– Warning Letter
– Restriction of privilege
– Suspension
– Revocation
– Detention, confiscate or Grounding of Unmanned Aircraft
2) A Judicial action involves the prosecution of an alleged offender in Civil Court. This usually involves contraventions under the Federal Decree Law (26) 2022.
Appeal process initiated to allow applicant (individual /organization) who feels aggrieved by a decision (Administrative and/or Judicial action) made against them by the GCAA, the right to apply for an appeal against that decision.
Note: The scope of this process excludes any appeal related to aviation security (AVSEC)
The applicant (individual /organization may appeal within 30 days from the date received the Notice of Law Enforcement Action). Guidance to the appeal process can be found in the GCAA website.
CAR-UAEX – UA Experimentation Ops – Issue 2
CAR-UAEX – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) EXPERIMENTATION OPERATIONS – ISSUE 02
For the purposes of this CAR, the following abbreviations and definitions apply:
(a) Abbreviations
(1) AMC: Acceptable Means of Compliance
(2) GCAA: General Civil Aviation Authority
(3) LAA: Local Appropriate Authority
(4) LoC: Letter of Conformity
(5) MOIAT: Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology
(6) UA: Unmanned Aircraft
(7) UOA: UA Operator Authorization
(8) VLOS: Visual Line of Sight
(b) Definitions
(1)Acceptable Means of Compliance: Are standards adopted by the GCAA to illustrate means to establish compliance with the CAR’s. An entity/or a person wishing not to comply with the AMC must comply using other means accepted by the Authority.
Note: Alternative means of compliance are those that propose an alternative to an existing AMC or those that propose new means to establish compliance with the CAR’s for which no associated AMC have been adopted by the GCAA.
(2) Airspace Approval: An Authorization issued by the GCAA or LAA, as the case, to conduct an UA flight operation at specific time and on a specific location and route.
(3)Experimental Operation: Operation of UA for the purpose of UA research and development, UA flights to develop new technology, installing a new equipment, experimenting new use of UA and scientific and academic research.
(4) Local Appropriate Authority: The local authority responsible with regards to the civil aviation affairs in the relevant Emirate.
(5) Operator: An operator engaged in the operation of a UA for experimentation purposes only.
(6) Special operation approval: special approval issued by the GCAA or LAA, as the case, to conduct an Unmanned Aircraft flight operation exceeding operation limitation.
(7) UA Operator Authorization: is a document issued by GCAA that authorize the operator to conduct UA operation for the registered purpose. This document include list of authorized UAS.
(8) UA Pilot: A person authorized by the operator to operate an UA by remotely acting on flight and engine controls from the commencement of the flight until the end of flight.
(9) Unmanned Aircraft (UA): An aircraft operated with no pilot on board. An UA may be remotely piloted or autonomously flown.
Note: UA includes a broad spectrum of aircraft, from drones, and model radio controlled aircraft, to highly complex remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) and highly automated or autonomous UA.
(10) VLOS operation: means a type of UAS operation in which, the remote pilot is able to maintain continuous unaided visual contact with the unmanned aircraft, allowing the remote pilot to control the flight path of the unmanned aircraft in relation to other aircraft, people and obstacles for the purpose of avoiding collisions.
LAA of each emirate is the authority responsible for authorization, approval and oversight of the UA operations performed within its territory. If there is no LAA in a specific emirate or the LAA of this emirate is not performing these tasks, the GCAA will be the sole responsible for approval and oversight of the UA operations performed within this emirate.
NOTE: If the operator is based in an emirate; it must communicate and obtain required authorization and permission from LAA of relevant Emirate. Otherwise the operator shall communicate and obtain required authorization and permission from GCAA.
(a) This CAR prescribes the requirements to be met by operators operating UA for experimentation purposes only.
(b) This CAR does not apply to:
(1) UA operated by military or law enforcement agencies (state UA);
(2) UA intended for carriage of passengers; and
(3) UA operation for Goods delivery
Note: for Recreational, Commercial & governmental, Demonstration, Event organizer, or Carriage of passengers, refer to:
– CAR UAR – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT RECREATIONAL FIGHT
– CAR UAC- UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) COMMERCIAL & GOVERNMENTAL OPERATIONS
– CAR UAD – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) DEMONSTRATION OPERATIONS
– CAR UAEV – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) EVENT OPERATIONS
– CAR-UAM – URBAN AIR MOBILITY OPERATIONS
(a) No operator shall perform experimental UA operations without a valid UA Operator Authorization (UOA) issued by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(b) The application for UOA shall be made in a form and manner established by the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(c) In order to obtain UOA the operator shall apply through GCAA or LAA registration platform.
(d) Prior to applying for UOA the applicant shall obtain Letter of Conformity (LoC) for each UA from Ministry of Industry Advanced Technology (MOIAT) e-service.
The operator shall appoint an accountable person who has corporate authority and fund access for ensuring compliance with this CAR and relevant legislation and regulation:
(a) The operator shall shall ensure that every UA operation is conducted in accordance with this CAR, and applicable laws (including the Civil Aviation Law of the UAE, Federal Decree Law No. (26) of 2022), and any relevant publication issued by LAA.
(a) The operator shall ensure that all UA are registered appropriately insured before commencement of any operation.
(b) The operator shall notify the GCAA or LAA, as the case, in sufficient time for any changes concerning the accountable person, operator name, address or contact details, type of UA, fleet size or any change to the type of operations prior to implementing the change.
(c) The operator shall ensure that all UA instruments and equipment required for safe operation, are available, serviceable and maintained in accordance with the manufacturer and operator’s maintenance instructions.
(d) The operator shall ensure UA Pilot is competent to perform the intended operation and possess the skills and the knowledge about law, regulations and procedures.
(e) The operator shall ensure that UA(s) are securely stored, and handed-over to pilots in a controlled and documented manner.
(f) The operator shall establish and implement procedures to control the UA operation records. Records shall be stored in a manner that ensures protection from damage, alteration and theft. Records shall be retained for at least 24 months.
(g) In addition to the flying condition stipulated in “My Drone Hub” mobile application and the UOA certificate, the operator shall establish and implement procedures for the safe operation including the following:
(1) The UA Pilot shall give way to other UA and maintain safe distance from each other and from any manned aircraft at all times and land the UA safely whenever hearing or sighting any manned aircraft in close proximity to the UA operation
(2) The UA Pilot shall ensure that operations do not compromise the privacy of legal and natural person and do not cause injury or damage to natural person and properties.
(3) The UA Pilot shall ensure Minimum Safe Distance from any persons and fixed or mobile objects and shall not fly above crowds.
(4) The UA pilot shall ensure that the UA is in a safe operating condition for the intended flight.
(5) Procedures required to comply with this CAR or any relevant publication issued by LAA, including procedure to deal with emergency and abnormal situation shall be established.
Records should include, but not limited to the following:
(a) Flight mission logs containing:
i. Date of the flight.
ii. Route information/ GPS coordinates.
iii. Time of start and End of Flight.
iv. Name of Pilot.
v. Observations / incidents/ equipment failure.
(b) GCAA or LAA Airspace Approval, if applicable.
(c) UA details: UA model, UA serial number, registration, UA weight, UA main color.
(d) UA Pilots training certificate and license.
The procedures should be easily accessible to concerned staff and should state clear roles and responsibilities of the operator and the UA Pilot.
No one shall fly UA in the UAE airspace without complying with the following requirements:
(a) The applicant shall be of 18 years minimum unless otherwise accepted by the GCAA or LAA, as the
case.
(b) The applicant shall complete UA training provided by UA training organization approved by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(c) The applicant shall be UAE resident.
No one shall fly UA in the UAE airspace unless obtain pilot license issued by GCAA or LAA, as the case. the following provisions shall be met:
(a) The applicant shall be of 18 years minimum unless otherwise accepted by the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(b) The applicant shall complete UA training provided by UA training organization approved by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(c) The applicant shall be UAE resident.
(a) The UA operator shall obtain an UA Airspace Approval prior to any UA operation, unless the flight is intended to be conducted within:
(1) Interior Building space: Airspace inside a building, or within the interior area of a closed stadium or a facility.
(2) Exterior Building Airspace: Airspace within 10 meters off the facade or 5 meters above the roof of a building provided the building is located outside airports boundaries/fences and further boundaries defined by Air Navigation Service Provider. If the building is associated with heliport then a prior approval from the heliport operator shall be obtained.
(3) Drone Fly Zone: Up to date UA fly zone as indicated in the map guidance in “My Drone Hub” mobile application..
(b) The following airspace approval limitations shall apply to any UA operation, unless a special operation approval is issued by the GCAA or LAA, as the case:
(1) Operations shall be limited to day time;
(2) Operations shall be limited to VLOS operations;
(3) Operations shall be limited to 400 ft. height AGL;
(4) Operations shall be limited to UA with a maximum take-off mass of 25kg; and
(5) No Dangerous Goods shall be transported.
a) Any UA Airspace Approval Application should be submitted through the GCAA or LAA E-Services, as the case.
b) Application should be provided 2 weeks minimum before the intended operation/flight.
c) All UOA holders have to comply with GCAA and LAA rules and conditions, as the case.
d) The operator may apply for long term operational approval for designated area “for example University. premises” where the operator wishes to conduct the experimental flights
In order to obtain special operation approval, the operator should submit a specific operations risk assessment (SORA) to GCAA or LAA, as the case, to evaluate and authorize the operations. Through SORA the operator should demonstrate that the operation can be conducted with an acceptable level of safety.
a) The operators shall ensure compliance with any security requirement mandated by the the GCAA, LAA, or any other security agencies.
b) The use of aerial photographic apparatus installed on the UA shall not be permitted without a prior authorization from the Security Sector within the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(a) The operator shall report to the GCAA, any accident and serious incident, through the following hotline: +971506414667 and E-mail: aai@gcaa.gov.ae. Accidents shall be also reported to the local Emirate Police.
(b) The operator shall report to LAA, any accident and serious incident, through applicable channel.
(c) The report shall contain all pertinent information, known to the operator, about the accident or serious incident. Reports shall be made within 3 hours from the accident/ serious incident occurrence.
(d) Where relevant, the operator shall produce a follow-up report to provide details of actions it intends to take to prevent similar occurrences in the future.
(e) The operator shall report occurrences to the GCAA though the ROSI system.
The following list while not exhaustive includes types of occurrences involving UA operations, which should be reported to the GCAA (by email to aai@gcaa.gov.ae) and LAA:
(a) Crashes
(b) Interferences with signal or control of UA.
(c) near miss with a manned aircraft or other UA;
(d) Collisions with other objects;
(e) Operation which results in a public nuisance.
(f) Operations out of the area assigned for UA operation.
(g) A serious or fatal injury (third parties and own personnel)
(h) UA lost while operation.
The operator should comply with AMC-22 “Incident Reporting”.
(a) The UA Operator Authorization (UOA) shall be valid for one year and its validity is subject to:
(1) The Operator remains in compliance with the applicable requirements and conditions stipulated in the authorization and in this CAR or any relevant publication issued by LAA, as the case.;
(2) The validity of GCAA or LAA Security Clearance, as the case.
(3) The GCAA or LAA, as the case, is granted access, at any time, to the operator’s facility, equipment, document, records, data, procedures or any other material relevant to its activity; and
(4) The UOA has not being surrendered, suspended or revoked.
(b) The UA Operator Authorization (UOA) may be renewed upon to operator’s demand.
Upon obtaining UOA; the operator will be subject to the GCAA or LAA, as the case, surveillance program over the scope, requirement and provision promulgated in this CAR. Any Non-compliance with this regulation will result in findings which are divided into three levels.
Finding Classification & Definitions:
During oversight inspection and audit, if the evidence indicates that the individual and/or operators has violated the provision of the relevant federal decree or civil aviation law or GCAA regulation or relevant LAA publication, an enforcement action decision and deterrent action shall be applied against the violator.
If violation and non-compliance detected, the operator may be subject to one of the following deterrent actions:
1) An Administrative action may be taken where an authorized operator violate a provision of this regulation. Administrative action can be:
– Oral Counseling
– Warning Letter
– Restriction of privilege
– Suspension
– Revocation
– Detention, confiscate or Grounding of Unmanned Aircraft
2) A Judicial action involves the prosecution of an alleged offender in Civil Court. This usually involves contraventions under the Federal Decree Law (26) 2022.
Appeal process initiated to allow applicant (individual /operator) who feels aggrieved by a decision (Administrative and/or Judicial action) made against them by the GCAA, the right to apply for an appeal against that decision.
Note: The scope of this process excludes any appeal related to aviation security (AVSEC)
The applicant (individual /operator may appeal within 30 days from the date received the Notice of Law Enforcement Action). Guidance to the appeal process can be found be found in the website.
CAR-UAR – UA Recreational Flight – Issue 2
CAR-UAR – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) RECREATIONAL FLIGHT – ISSUE 02
For the purposes of this regulation, the following abbreviations and definitions apply:
(a) Abbreviations
(1) GCAA: General Civil Aviation Authority
(2) LAA: Local Appropriate Authority
(3) LoC: Letter of Conformity
(4) MOIAT: Ministry of Industry & Advanced Technology
(5) UA: Unmanned Aircraft
(6) VLOS: Visual Line of Sight
(b) Definitions
(1) A recreational flight: UA operation conducted for fun and enjoyment purposes only. Recreational flight does not include work, business, compensation or hiring purposes.
(2) Local Appropriate Authority: The local authority responsible with regards to the civil aviation affairs in the relevant Emirate.
(3) UA Pilot: means a natural person responsible for safely conducting the flight of a UA by operating its flight controls, either manually or, when the UA flies automatically, by monitoring its course and remaining able to intervene and change its course at any time.
(4) Unmanned Aircraft (UA): An aircraft operated with no pilot on board. An UA may be remotely piloted or autonomously flown.
Note: UA includes a broad spectrum of aircraft, from drones, and model radio-controlled aircraft, to highly complex remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) and highly automated or autonomous UA.
(5) VLOS operation: means a type of UAS operation in which, the remote pilot is able to maintain continuous unaided visual contact with the unmanned aircraft, allowing the remote pilot to control the flight path of the unmanned aircraft in relation to other aircraft, people and obstacles for the purpose of avoiding collisions.
LAA of each emirate is the authority responsible for authorization, approval and oversight of the UA operations performed within its territory. If there is no LAA in a specific emirate or the LAA of this emirate is not performing these tasks, the GCAA will be the sole responsible for approval and oversight of the UA operations performed within this emirate.
NOTE: If the operator is based in an emirate; it must communicate and obtain required authorization and permission from LAA of relevant Emirate. Otherwise the operator shall communicate and obtain required authorization and permission from GCAA.
(a) This CAR prescribes the requirements to be complied with, for the operation of UA for recreational purposes.
(b) This CAR does not apply to:
(1) UA operated by military or law enforcement agencies (state UA);
(2) UA intended for carriage of passengers;
Note: For purposes other than UA recreational use, refer to:
CAR UAC- UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) COMMERCIAL & GOVERNMENTAL OPERATIONS
CAR UAD – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) DEMONSTRATION OPERATIONS
CAR UAEV – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) EVENT OPERATIONS
CAR UAEX – UNMANNED AIRCRAFT (UA) EXPERIMENTATION OPERATIONS
CAR-UAM – URBAN AIR MOBILITY OPERATIONS
(a) Prior to any Unmanned Aircraft (UA) activity or operation, the UA pilot shall register the UA through the GCAA or the local appropriate authority (LAA) registration platform, as the case, the UA pilot shall:
(1) be aged at least 18 years old.
(2) be UAE resident.
(3) Provide Letter of conformity from Ministry of Industry & Advanced Technology (MOIAT) e-service.
(b) Once UA registration is completed, the owner shall mark the UA with the approval number provided in the registration certificate.
The owner may use permanent marker, label, or engraving to display Approval number on UA.
No one shall fly UA in the UAE airspace without complying with the following requirements:
(a) be 18 years minimum unless otherwise accepted by the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(b) have successfully completed UA training provided by UA training organization approved by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(c) be UAE resident.
(a) No one shall operate UA in the UAE airspace unless he/she holds a UA pilot license issued by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(b) The applicant shall:
(1) be 18 years minimum unless otherwise accepted by the GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(2) have successfully completed UA training provided by UA training organization approved by GCAA or LAA, as the case.
(3) be UAE resident.
The UA pilot shall cancel or change the ownership of the UA registration through the GCAA or LAA platform, as the case.
The UA pilot shall comply with following flying conditions:
(a) Unmanned aircraft weight shall not exceed 5 kilograms
(b) Vertical Operations shall be limited to 400 ft. height AGL
(c) Operations shall be limited to day time
(d) Horizontally operation range is restricted to within VLOS and
(e) Direct radio control link shall be maintained between UA Pilot and the UA
(f) UA pilot shall not violate individual’s privacy.
(g) No Goods shall be transported by air.
(h) A flight shall be restricted to the fly zone indicated in the “GCAA Flying zone Map”which is available in the “My Drone Hub” mobile application”;
(i) UA Shall not be operated above people or near public or residential area and private properties and installations;
(j) UA pilot shall not operate a UA in a manner which may cause safety risks to any other individuals, properties or aircraft.
(k) UA pilot shall take all possible steps to avoid the air traffic and immediately ground the UA;
In case of any accident or safety incident involving the UA, the UA pilot to inform the GCAA via 00971 506414667 immediately or LAA accident investigation team and local emirate police.
(a) Any modification to the UA or its component or system which may affect its initial functionality and specifications as per obtained LoC from MOIAT.
(b) Installing or equipping UA with cameras or any other devices or equipment that may be used for filming or recording.
(c) Flying over prohibited or restricted areas as indicated in fly zone in “My Drone Hub” mobile application.
For use of unmanned aircraft having a mass greater than 5kg or fixed wings, a flight shall be restricted to the approved flying zones in the approved flying clubs.
During oversight inspection by GCAA or LAA or any law enforcement agency or any report, if the evidence indicates that the UA pilot has violated the provision of relevant federal decree or civil aviation law or GCAA regulation or relevant LAA publication, an enforcement action decision and deterrent action shall be applied against the violator.
If violation and non-compliance detected, the UA pilot may be subject to one of the following deterrent actions:
(a) An Administrative action may be taken where an authorized person violates a provision of this regulation. Administrative action can be:
– Oral Counseling
– Warning Letter
– Suspension
– Revocation
– Detention, confiscate or Grounding of Unmanned Aircraft
(b) A Judicial action involves the prosecution of an alleged offender in Civil Court. This usually involves contraventions under the Federal Decree Law (26) 2022.
Appeal process initiated to allow applicant (UA pilot) who feels aggrieved by a decision (Administrative and/or Judicial action) made against them by the GCAA, the right to apply for an appeal against that decision.
Note: The scope of this process excludes any appeal related to aviation security (AVSEC)
The applicant (UA pilot) may appeal within 30 days from the date received the Notice of Law Enforcement Action). Guidance to the appeal process can be found in the GCAA website.
Advanced Air Mobility (AAM)
UAE has two pertinent documents relating to UAM:
(1) CAR-UAM – UAM Ops – Issue 1
and
(2) CAR-AutoUAS – Passenger Carrying Autonomous UAS Experimental Ops – Issue 1 – listed below
CAR-UAM – UAM Ops – Issue 1
CAR-UAM – URBAN AIR MOBILITY OPERATIONS – ISSUE 1
CAR-AutoUAS – Passenger Carrying Autonomous UAS Experimental Ops – Issue 1
AAM News
2023 – EvFly, Al Shaheen Aviation Holding partner to advance UAE AAM operations
2023 – Skyports Infrastructure’s vertiport design approved for development in Dubai
2023 – Foster + Partners, Skyports show preliminary design of Dubai vertiport
2023 – VPorts initiates certification process for its vertiports in Dubai
2024 – Skyports, RTA and Joby to launch air taxi service in Dubai
2024 – Falcon and Archer Launch Abu Dhabi-Dubai eVTOL Flights
2024 – eVTOL firm FlyNow targets 2025 e-copter test flights in Saudi, UAE
2024 – Dubai-Based Firm Acquires Over 100 Flying Cars
Short Essay Questions
Question 1
You have been hired by a Drone Startup Company. Your boss has immediately assigned this job to you.
They need you to prepare a one-page memo detailing the legalities of using a drone to film camels in Abu Dhabi, pictured above.
They need you to mention any national laws and local ordinances.
They specifically want to know what airspace you will be operating in and whether or not you need an airspace authorization.
Does it matter whether or not you are a citizen of the country?
Lastly, there is a bonus for you if, as you scroll through this chapter, you find any typos or broken links!
Question 2
Do you need a certificate to fly UAS?
If so, how do you obtain one?
Are there fees associated with this?
If so, how much?
Question 3
May you operate beyond visual line of sight?
If so, what procedures must you follow?
Question 4
Does the country have UAM/AAM laws? If so, describe, citing the exact law.
Question 5
Are you aware of any new laws or policies not mentioned above? If so, describe, citing the exact law or policy.
