Where Can You Fly Your Drone in GERMANY? (Epic) Kochlsee

This dope shot of Kochelsee (Bayern, Germany) has been taken respecting local regulation. Which laws do apply in Germany when flying drones?

I like to break down around three principles:

1. Safety
2. Privacy
3. Nature.

Safety comes first. The most obvious one thing that you are not allowed to do is to flight over, nearby, or in an airport. Do not even try to do that. They’ll find you and you will be in trouble. This applies also for helipads as well as airports, so do not flight nearby large hospitals, because they too might have helicopters taking off from the roof. You shouldn’t venture nearby critical federal infrastructures either, for similar aforementioned safety reasons.

Privacy comes into play for the next big no go: do not flight over residential areas. It is not just a matter of safety, privacy is also a big concern. Though your intentions are the best, drones are indeed perceived as a manner of spying into other people life, so you are not allowed to flight over residential area. In big cities, the only place you can flight are therefore parks, however, again, privacy and safety matter: you are not allowed to flight over crowds, and generally there shouldn’t be people gathering in a radius of 100m around you.

Nature defines the third (and probably, the largest) no fly zone: do not flight over conservation area, i.e. nature reserves. You will be surprised how much land fall into this category, in Germany. It ain’t a matter of safety or privacy this time, but rather, nature and specifically noise. Those lands are devoted to nature, so you shouldn’t enter them with motorized vehicles, cars, bikes and drones.

We have seen several principles that apply. However, the good news is that you don’t need to remember any of them. The very good thing is that there is a free registration-less official DFS app (Deutsches Flugsicherung) ready for download on the App Store. Select you gear and you’ll see wether you can fly or not in this or that spot, and also what to take care of before flying, such as checking that there are no groups of people nearby you, having daylight, or any special warning which might apply.

Additionally to anything which you’ll see in the app, remember that to fly a drone legally in Germany you need an insurance. Sometimes you’ll need a separate insurance for your drone, sometimes it’s part of your Privathapflicht, so I recommend you check with your insurance provider first. There are several online options available as well. Beyond 250g, you’ll need additionally a sticker on your drone indicating who the pilot is, kind of a license plate, but for a drone. And, with the new common European regulation, pass an online test. Basically it’s like your drone is a small scooter: you need insurance, and for larger ones, a license plate and a license.

Finally, the basic rule of the air...

Which is not just written in the law, it is also good for the safety of you and your drone! You have to maintain line of sight with your drone at all time! So when you look up in the sky, you have to be able to see your drone. A small exception apply if you fly a below 250g and FPV, so that you can use goggles instead of a screen. Maximum allowed altitude is 100m from ground, beyond that you won’t be able to see your drone anyhow.

***

Shot with DJI Mavic Mini and Sony Alpha a7iii on Sony Carl-Zeiss 35mm and iPhone XS on June 2020. Audio recorded on Røde VideoMicro. Assembled on Final Cut Pro X and Motion.

(C) 2020 by AMP! Antonio Media Production

[schusei-]

Thanks for nice information.
I would like to asking you which fly map app do you use?

[saltypotato]

Nice video! but youre close to the camera '

[tube-tc]

Hey Antonio! thanks for the excellent video. Would you know if it is allowed to fly in English Garden in Munich? only a <250g drone or also a 600g fixed wing airplane? Thanks in advance!

[JayeshandShreya]

Hi from Munich, Thanks for this informative video.
I have a Mavic Air 2S and will be taking pilot test soon. But I wonder that I won't be able to fly drone near famous tourist attractions near cities. Is there a legal way to fly drone near tourist attractions? I create travel Vlogs and therefore looking for good drone shots.
Do you know from where I can get drone shots if it is restricted to fly drone there?

[anamikapatra]

What insurance you took? I have dji mini 2, I am planning to take insurance.
And if I fly restricted area by mistake, what happen? How can I know which area is restricted? Please let me know

[RM-xcmh]

Hello, nice video, and thank you for the information! Just a short question, if the drone, is under 250g do you have so many restrictions? for example I installed "DFS Drohnen", and I cannot find a place near me to use the drone (DJI Mavic Mini) I leave near Nuremberg

[Viewfinder.Stories]

Do you have experience flying in the Alps? I'm frustrated now because of these Rules. In my understanding pretty landscapes are most of the time considered as national parks and These are also no fly zone. If you wanna follow really the rules, it's almost impossible to fly a drone in EU unless you have special permit.

[TwilightPhantom]

Map2fly says that Kochelsee is Vogelschutzgebiet
Are you sure you are allowed to fly there?

[epicvoyagers]

I am using DJI Mini 2. should I take insurance or license for that?