A Comparative Global Analysis of Drone Laws: Best Practices and Policies

Abstract

This chapter reviews existing and emerging drone laws around the globe. The opportunity to study a completely new legal space is as rare as it is difficult because many laws do not yet exist to address the practical challenge of integrating unmanned aviation assets into an airspace ecosystem originally designed for manned flight. In this context, the goals of this chapter are twofold. First, drone laws so far enacted are reviewed, and second, from that data set, trends and best practices for private and commercial unmanned aviation used worldwide are assessed. The qualitative data collected for this chapter reveal that substantive drone laws vary from nation to nation; but safety, privacy, and national security are unifying concerns underlying the first generation of unmanned aviation regulations worldwide. Most authorities around the globe require both private and public drone operators to obtain regulatory pre-approval for flight, with many national civil aviation authorities settling on an approach that ties permission to fly with the physical and operational capabilities of the drone to be flown (e.g., size, mass, speed, height, and operator qualifications). Meanwhile, broadly speaking, the operation of commercial drones is strictly regulated, if allowed at all, while the flight of private, recreational, hobby, and toy drones is permissible unless operated irresponsibly near airplanes, airports, and people. As such, best practices suggest that drone advocates reflect the nearly ubiquitous conservatism of drone laws around the world. First, drone manufacturers and distributors should launch outreach campaigns designed to educate the public and lawmakers about the benefits of unmanned aviation. Second, and contemporaneously, drone users must put forward a compelling safety case that gives regulators the confidence to relax laws and policies that would otherwise impede the development of unmanned aviation technologies worldwide.