Its important to beware of the drone regulations when flying drones in New Zealand.
The main sources to check for the latest rules is the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand's website about RPAS, UAV, UAS, Drones and Model Aircraft.
As there are now a large amount of drones and new multi rotor 'helicopters' on the market its important that everyone keeps up to date with the rules to ensure that they aren't breaking any rules and keeping the airspace safe.
Not only is there the rules covered in the civil aviation authority sometimes local councils have enacted their own rules and bylaws such as the auckland Public Safety and Nuisance Bylaw 2013 that states flyers must not use their UAV “recklessly or in a manner which may intimidate, be dangerous, be injurious to or cause a nuisance to any person”.
When flying drones in public areas we reccomend viewing the local rules that may apply.
For example listed on the auckland council's website as of august 2018 the list the following Rules and guidelines for flying UAVs and dones in NZ
They have the following listed on the website above
Don’t:
- fly a drone over a sports field if it’s in use
- operate over parked vehicles or park roads
- operate within of 20 metres of or be flown over other users of the park
- fly over or within 50 metres of livestock on parks, sensitive wildlife habitats such as wetlands, or nesting or roosting birds
- operate within 20 metres of or fly over park buildings and overhead wires
- operate over dry flammable vegetation
- fly over adjoining private properties.
Do:
- be courteous of other park users, beachgoers and people walking dogs
- keep the UAV in full view at all times (e.g. not operated through binoculars, video monitor or smartphone, unless an observer is present)
- fly in daylight hours only
- cease operation if requested by council staff.
I have read the Rules, Where can i fly my drone in New Zealand
There is lots of information that you can read online about where you can fly your drone in nz legally and safely, one of the best resources to use is the Interactive maps on Airshare.co.nz
https://www.airshare.co.nz/maps
You can use the Key at the top of the page to understand the different areas including restricted areas, Military operating areas and control zones.
I know the rules and where to fly, what drone should i buy?
There are various different options to look at for drones when comparing price, functionality flight time and features.
For the beginner we recommend that the best drone for beginners is the DJI Tello
Beginner Drone
| DJI Tello Toy Drone with 720HD Video Camera |
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Beginners to Intermediates that want something better in terms of flight time, handling and video recording we would suggest getting the DJI Spark Drone available in Three Colours
Beginner to Intermediate Drone
| Lava Red | Meadow Green | Alpine White |
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