DC NFZ Clarification

[tjshelton]

I've seen a lot on here about the 30 mile DC NFZ, I haven't seen anything about the 15 Mile "Inner Circle." So I went in search of more info...

I just pulled this off the FAA website (No Drone Zone):

The National Capital Region is governed by a Special Flight Rules Area (SFRA) within a 30-mile radius of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, which restricts all flights in the greater DC area.


The SFRA is divided into a 15-mile radius inner ring and a 30-mile radius outer ring.

• Flying an unmanned aircraft within the 15-mile radius inner ring is prohibited without specific FAA authorization.
• Flying a UAS for recreational or non-recreational use between 15 and 30 miles from Washington, D.C. is allowed under these operating conditions:
  • Aircraft must weigh less than 55 lbs. (including any attachments such as a camera)
  • Aircraft must be registered and marked
  • Fly below 400 ft.
  • Fly within visual line-of-sight
  • Fly in clear weather conditions
  • Never fly near other aircraft

The airspace around Washington, D.C. is more restricted than in any other part of the country. Rules put in place after the 9/11 attacks establish "national defense airspace" over the area and limit aircraft operations to those with an FAA and Transportation Security Administration authorization. Violators face stiff fines and criminal penalties.

 

[Mark The Droner]

NFZ is an acronym DJI uses. It's also sometimes used by the US military - usually referring to areas in the middle east.

The immediate area around DC which is roughly a 15-mile radius from the White House and also Reagan National Airport is called the DC FRZ (Flight Restricted Zone).

I personally like the phrase No Drone Zone and I wish it was used more often. It applies nicely to the DC FRZ.

The doughnut shaped area which circles the DC FRZ allows drone flights under certain conditions as outlined in NOTAM FDC 6/2069 released in February. In addition to the conditions listed above, there is no night flying, unless something has changed since February.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6c/070727_New_Washington_ADIZ-FRZ.jpg

Here's a better illustration showing most of the major roads relative to the air map.

https://www.faasafety.gov/files/gslac/courses/content/55/711/Graphic - SFRA lg.jpg

Thanks for posting.

 

[RJ_Make]

Great post. It took me a few days to figure this out when I started flying, as I'm in the Paleo Gate area. When I first saw that big RED ring I thought great I'll have to drive 20 miles to fly,... until I looked into it further.

 

[tjshelton]

NFZ is an acronym DJI uses. It's also sometimes used by the US military - usually referring to areas in the middle east.

The immediate area around DC which is roughly a 15-mile radius from the White House and also Reagan National Airport is called the DC FRZ (Flight Restricted Zone).

I personally like the phrase No Drone Zone and I wish it was used more often. It applies nicely to the DC FRZ.

The doughnut shaped area which circles the DC FRZ allows drone flights under certain conditions as outlined in NOTAM FDC 6/2069 released in February. In addition to the conditions listed above, there is no night flying, unless something has changed since February.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6c/070727_New_Washington_ADIZ-FRZ.jpg

Here's a better illustration showing most of the major roads relative to the air map.

https://www.faasafety.gov/files/gslac/courses/content/55/711/Graphic - SFRA lg.jpg

Thanks for posting.

As I work for US military aviation, NFZ is an acronym that I'm used to. My bad... I like your term better and will use it in the future. The main reason I posted this was because of the mention of the 15 mile radius "inner circle" which I hadn't seen in any other posts. I'm sure it's in here somewhere and I just haven't found it yet.


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