Notifying airspace users of drone and remotely piloted events or activity

The way you notify us will be changing soon, replacing the current form. A pilot group of participants from the RPAS community are currently trialling the new ACOMS Portal which has been designed to be easy to use. We will gain their feedback to aid further development of the ACOMS portal and then once enhanced look to roll out the new service in the coming months.

To enhance safety, you can notify other airspace users of permanent model flying sites and also temporary out of the ordinary drone and remotely piloted aircraft activity.

Please note: For activities requiring Notice to aviation (NOTAM) action only (please see below for an explanation of NOTAM), a minimum notice of five working days prior to the intended start time should be provided. During periods of high workload, we may be unable to process notifications made with less than the stated minimum notice.

Permanent model flying sites

Locations of some permanent model flying sites are detailed in the UK Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP) section ENR 5.5 (available on the NATS Aeronautical Information Service (AIS) website).
To make additions or changes to this list follow the process detailed in CAP 1618: Airspace Design: Unusual aerial activities published in the UK AIP.

Notifying Visual Line of Sight or Beyond Visual Line of Sight using visual observers

Please complete and submit our notification form.

For proposals to operate Beyond Visual Line of Sight requiring segregation from other airspace users, please email arops@caa.co.uk for further advice and guidance.

After you submit the notification form, you will receive an automated email confirmation that the details have been received. We will then check to make sure all the required information has been provided in line with regulatory/policy requirements. The event/activity is then compared against other known activity where we would support the co-ordination and deconfliction of any conflicting activities. If clarification of the details is required, we will contact you via the email address that was provided in the notification form.

Flying near hospitals and helicopter landing sites

Flights near locations such as hospitals should be covered by a NOTAM due to the helicopter flying that may be taking place, which are often unannounced and are a high priority for medical reasons.

Drone and remotely piloted aircraft operators/sponsors should also make prior contact with the relevant hospital(s) and/or Air Ambulance operator(s), if appropriate.

Flying in the vicinity of other locations, such as racetracks or known helicopter landing sites may also benefit from a NOTAM.

NOTAM

A NOTAM is a Notice to Aviation. It contains information concerning the establishment, condition or change in any aeronautical facility, service, procedure or hazard, that is essential to those involved in aviation. Further details of the NOTAM system are in the UK AIP section GEN 3.1 (available on the NATS AIS website) and in the UK NOTAM Guidance Material.

Drone and remotely piloted aircraft flying Visual Line Of Sight below 400 feet above ground level are not deemed to be unusual aerial activity and therefore are not always required to be subject to NOTAM action. However, there are instances where a NOTAM is appropriate (such as flying near a hospital explained above) or where an operator may wish to fly with a NOTAM in place.

Requests for a NOTAM should be made by completing and submitting the notification form.

Advice and guidance on NOTAM action can be obtained by email at arops@caa.co.uk.

We will endeavour to provide a response. However, during periods of high workload, it may not be possible to respond to every notification. When enquiring about the status of an outstanding notification, please always quote the reference number that you received in the automated email confirmation.

Subject to workload, we will respond by email to the address that was provided in the notification form. The email will explain whether or not the notification has been successfully processed. Additional advice/guidance may be included.

Issued NOTAMs can be viewed on the NATS AIS website.

Currently this is a free service.