Can YOU Fly Your Drone at NIGHT? - UK Drone Rules

Hey everyone! Flying your drone at night in the open category of the UK airspace seems simple. As there no extra rules. However, the very nature of those rules changes dramatically. Join Sean for a video explainer on a topic many of you have been messaging on recently. Let us know your thoughts and extra tips in the comments!
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[@kevg4571]

As always, a top video Sean. I fly drones for the police in the South West UK. and especially this time of year most of our flying is at night! We do EVERYTHING you mentioned in the video… including day time reccys if we can, which obviously isn’t always possible. The one extra thing we do, as well as light our TOLA we carry a couple of really bright torches and scan the area above and around the TOLA looking for overhead wires etc, but we also use it to light up the drone (done by an observer) when taking off, to ensure the drone is functioning as we want, but more importantly when landing… it makes the height of the drone so much easier to gauge ! Keep up the good work!!

[@Geeksvana]

Thank you for the kind feedback!! Really appreciated. The idea of lighting the drone as it takes off is excellent!

[@Stefan_Boerjesson]

May I ask what model of drone You use?

[@kevg4571]

All DJI Drones at the moment. Matrice 300, M30T, Mavic 2 Enterprise and Mini 3 Pro. Although generally at night it’s either the M300 or M30T

[@Stefan_Boerjesson]

@@kevg4571 Wow. Even the little Mini 3 Pro. I'll call the nearest police station and offer my services. As Ukraine sometimes use the Mavic 3 Pro I've got muscles too. Joking!

[@mikeselectricstuff]

A drone with a bright light on it would often be visible way further away at night than an unlit one during the day. Also, rather less chance of anyone seeing you breaking rules at night!

[@Geeksvana]

Love the second part of your comment, you can enhance escape even more by driving away with car lights off 😂. Although on the first point, it isn't just about seeing the drone but the airspace and ground obstacles.

[@rogerhargreaves2272]

😂

[@andrewlee6152]

Remember obstacle avoidance sensors don't work well, if at all, at night

[@Geeksvana]

An excellent point! Thanks.

[@andrewlee6152]

I took my mini 4 Pro up when they had fireworks at the local school... got permission to take off on other side of the road, from the sports ground... big flat grass area, no wires or trees... just flew it straight up above me, aimed the camera and hit record... couple of minutes later, the message internal storage full appeared on the screen... No micro sd card in the drone... and by the time I got back home, the fireworks were done... Lesson not learned 😂

[@Stefan_Boerjesson]

Setting the Mavic 3 pro camera to night mode definately turns OA off. As experienced the OA turns off surpricingly early in the afternoon due to too low light according to system messages.

[@PeterPanoramics]

I turn off obstical avoidence as I do close proximate flying

[@homer1033]

brilliant video sean i haven't as yet flown my drone at night but what you say during this video makes a lot of sense and is a great help

[@amoktimeflies]

Brilliant vid, Sean! great timing as well given that everyone is probably itching to fly during these short days! Very good point on the prop icing of which I have first hand experience! Love to see 'the master' doing a basic instructional vid again as well 🙂 Was planning on a night flight vid in the next couple of weeks as long as the weather holds out, so will reference this vid so you can do the heavy lifting on the 'dry' stuff 😉😁👍 Amok

[@Geeksvana]

Thank you, Amok! Your support and kind words mean a lot.

[@Stefan_Boerjesson]

The head lights of the car give very good landing conditions. The home point service, the distance and height data are also helpful not to forget the radar map and its red line..

[@mickzeus6770]

Fantastic advice as usual. I've been flying for years and still found your tips very useful and learned me things. Thank you for even coming back to me in the first place, many do not reply. Which is ok but not in the completeness of the reasons. Again thank you.

[@Geeksvana]

Tha ks for the kind feedback! You are welcome!

[@c849243]

Thanks for all your help, Sean!

[@Geeksvana]

Thank you Mark!

[@countleppe5774]

Have Been Night Flying My DJI Spark Drone For Years, Great Fun, It Has Strong Front Red Lights And Good Flashing Green Lights On It's Feet. Good To See The Mini 4 Pro Has Now Landing Light As Well As lights On The Arms. My Potensic Atom Drone I Have Fitted Strobe Light On The Top Of The Drone Near The Front. However Flying At Night In EU Countries May Not Be Allowed, Worth Checking This Out. Calmer Drier Colder Weather In The UK Has Finally Arrived To Get Out And Fly A Drone Again, Been Waiting Long Enough. 🎉

[@AdrianMars]

Useful stuff, the only things I'd add are: I'd recommend using red light to illuminate your TOAL. It has a lower impact on night vision. Also, the Velcro that comes with most strobes I've found to be very poor, buy a roll of Velcro (brand) heavy duty self adhesive tape and use that.

[@Geeksvana]

Thanks Adrian! Excellent tips.

[@SkyTechPhoto]

I would like to see DJI have standard NAV light colours. Red on the left, green on the right, plus an anti collision strobe on the top and rear. This should be on all drones not just the enterprise ones. 🎆

[@mrbluesky9891]

Straight to the point. Great.

[@Geeksvana]

Thanks. Trying to use that edit button a little more... 😂

[@freedomofabird]

Excellent

[@cheekyoscar1353]

i fly my drone night . i only use the mavic 3 pro with decent quality strobe light . and because there's a light underneath & the camera is so much better etc . pre-planning is always a must. 👍

[@Geeksvana]

Great drone. Thanks for sharing your experience! I use the Air 3 at night for that awesome light it has.

[@spaceportseven]

I find flying at night VLOS very easy, fitting a bright white light on the front and red on the rear, your can see the UAS orientation much easier than in daytime and makes navigation really easy, so long as you have an illuminated launch landing area !

[@Geeksvana]

Great idea with different coloured lights!

[@spaceportseven]

@@Geeksvana Its mentioned in the CAP rules about having different coloured lights to aid orientation

[@rogerhargreaves2272]

Sound advice. A good refresher from my A2 training.

[@Geeksvana]

Thank you Roger! Happy new year!

[@rogerhargreaves2272]

@@Geeksvana Thanks Sean, good health for 2024.

[@enginewatcher6291]

All good advice, like to add. Take your time, batteries will be colder, shorter flight time.

[@PhreddCrintt]

Excellent Sean. You have a new subscriber.

[@Geeksvana]

Thank you! Much appreciated.

[@user-nu6vt3ic7r]

nice video use on mavic 3 classic top bottom strobe C1 in germany A1 licence A1-A3

[@briwyld]

Csn always set uo a waypoint flight in the daytime as well. Makes it safer and less risk of hitting something in the dark.

[@Geeksvana]

Nice idea, you are always there to hover over the button if anything happens too.

[@k1ortia]

Flywoo in the UK do some awesome LEDs for night flights.

[@paulyates4093]

Thanks Sean really interesting my strobon cree light flashes white is that ok

[@c849243]

Thanks!

[@Geeksvana]

Very generous!! Thank you Mark.

[@testpilotian3188]

We’ll, considering DJI have removed everything apart from flight restriction zones in their software now and this can now be overridden and ignored with the swipe of a finger if you have a verified account (which in itself, is as easy as buying a throwaway sim from the local newsagent and inputting someone else’s name and address), I guess the answer is “you can fly wherever and whenever you want now”.

[@EastAngliaUK]

the mini 4 pro is good for this due to the led light

[@johncarold]

Hi Sean, I love going to a parking lot at night and flying around the lot.

[@Geeksvana]

Why is it that I love watching night time parking lot FPV flights? Love the lights and speed.

[@narecardoso1]

Hi Sean. Is it still worth to get the A2 CofC? If not, what should we do if we want to fly commercially? I own an Air3. Thanks

[@EastAngliaUK]

you can tell the mini 4 pro lights to stay on when recording to

[@autisticdrone.]

The CAA could change the weight laws to allow a small LED strobe light to be fitted to a sub 250g drone, it would improve overall safety as the strobe could be left on even in the daytime and would be more visible to other aircraft. But the CAA would rather hinder us. I don’t believe there should be BVLOS for the police and private delivery companies if we can’t benefit from being able to fly BVLOS. 👍

[@will1234.]

Hi Sean, bit of an unrelated question, but kinda to do with night flights! I assume it is legal to film fireworks (at a public display) assuming all other drone rules are followed. (E.g not flying over crowds of people) It’s a safe flight as I tend to fly over the sea, so if there was a problem, absolutely worse case, I could bring it down into the sea. Obviously, I also wouldn’t get too close to the fireworks! However I couldn’t find anything on the cap 722 or other legislation mentioning fireworks. Also one more quick question, I mount a strobe to the back of my mini 2. As you need to be able to see the orientation of your drone at all times, would it count if I know when the light is visible im pretty much facing the back of the drone, and when it’s brightest it’s completely facing backwards.Would that count as VLOS? (as obviously seeing the orientation of a mini 2 is nearly impossible otherwise!!) I have tested and I can bring the drone back just by using the light and drone with no display/phone.

[@Geeksvana]

Hey William! Distance is your friend when flying near fireworks and it sounds like you keep away, so that's perfect. It is also worth checking if there are any temporary flight restrictions or NOTAMs for the area of the show and acting accordingly. In terms of the light for VLOS, it sounds like you have a good system. You are not 'allowed' to rely only on the lights but the combo of lights and drone if good.

[@AnthonyRobson-tl6zs]

stick big bright lights on and get more ufos see

[@iainwolstencroft3764]

Using red lights to illuminate the landing site might help reduce issues with light. What are the rules concerning the use of anti-collision lights in the UK at night? Do they need to be a specific colour if required??

[@leemadden3able]

Can you get lights for the magic mini if so where can I get them. Thanks

[@Geeksvana]

Hey Lee! If you search on Amazon for 'drone cree strobes', most will be decent. Choose the basic version attached via velcro as these are lighter and smaller. Here is an example as the ones I use are not in stock: amzn.eu/d/23Cae1J Hope it helps.

[@MK2.75_Focus_ST-InstaG]

So, as a DJI mini pro 4 owner, i can take the A2 test and be able to add lights and bigger batteries to my drone? I know the bigger batteries are not available in the UK yet but it's a nice bit of future proofing.

[@Geeksvana]

That's right. If you hold an A2 CofC, you can fly sub 500g drones in the A1 airspace. So lights and the plus battery can be used.

[@MK2.75_Focus_ST-InstaG]

@@Geeksvana can you recommend a company please? Are UAVhub okay?

[@MK2.75_Focus_ST-InstaG]

@@Geeksvana i got some great video footage at midnight New Years Eve, but i was scared to move the drone other than directly up and above me 😝

[@landroverlover1662]

What about commercial night operations in the open category? Are they the same rules?

[@Geeksvana]

Hey! Yes, it doesn't matter why you are flying in the open category. Rules are always the same. (If flying commercially, you do of course need insurance).

[@247SH]

So we can’t rely on lights in the day to see the orientation of the drone, while lights are fine at night. Have I misunderstood?

[@vince-n]

Great video 👍

[@Geeksvana]

Thanks Vince.

[@lindsayheyes925]

Sound advice. Here's some more: Set up a Waypoint Mission in daylight to fly at night. Caution: Your TOLP must be EXACTLY the same by night and day to avoid possible collision with trees etc.. How do I know this? 🤣🙄

[@daklakdigital3691]

I "FLY" (WEATHER) BALLOONS. CAA IS A JOKE FOR MOST OF US. WE SIMPLY USE THE USA LOAD PLUS AS NORMAL ADDED WITH A BATTERY AND A VERY BRIGHT STROBE. OUR LOADS INCLUDE RADIO BEACONS SO WE LOSE FEW LOADS.

[@jayrow7468]

What about the rule of a green strobe pointing down?

[@Geeksvana]

Hey! There is no such rule for the UK Open Category.

[@jayrow7468]

Ok thanks for clearing that up. 👍

[@NickHarbornePhotography]

My light has a visibility from at least 2 miles 😁😁😉

[@Geeksvana]

Keep eating those carrots 🥕. Happy new year Nick!

[@rogerhargreaves2272]

Yea, they can be very bright; even dazzling close up.

[@NickHarbornePhotography]

I have the FAA approved night firehouse Arc V tested to 3 miles visibility naked eye to comply with FAA rules ​@rogerhargreaves2272

[@NickHarbornePhotography]

​@@Geeksvanadon't need carrots with a firehouse Arc V bud 😁

[@DigiDriftZone]

The Mini4 Pro is so bright with the auxiliary light, I can see it much further at night!

[@ORBITALAURORA]

Nighttime FPV anything different one should be aware of ❓

[@johnburns5783]

Surely we don't need A2CofC just to fly at night ? I could add a strobe to my M3P and not fly over uninvolved people ? ( strobe would take it over 250gm) It would need at least one perhaps two strobes positioned so I know the orientation of the drone ( as per CAA rules) 😉😉

[@Geeksvana]

If the drone goes over 250g, you will need an A2 CofC to fly in the A1 airspace up to 500g. Otherwise it would need to be in the A3 subcategory.

[@johnburns5783]

@Geeksvana cheers Sean, didn't know that. Everyday is a school day 😉😉

[@rogerhargreaves2272]

Should be fine in A3 category

[@johnburns5783]

@@rogerhargreaves2272 yeah £100 for the A2CofC exam

[@kevg4571]

Yeah exactly. If over 250g you can fly in the A3 category, so minimum of 150m from residential, industrial or recreational areas.

[@Droningonuk]

You can see the mini 3 pro due to the green lights until you record then the lights go off 🙄

[@Geeksvana]

It is rather annoying. I hope they change this soon. It is helpful on other models to keep them on.

[@Droningonuk]

@@Geeksvana i think you can get 2 flytrons on a mini 2 and be compliant