120m max height
50m away from people
500m max range
Only line of sight
The South Africa National Aviation Authority, SACAA developed a list of regulations for all drone users countrywide. The rules apply to both commercial and recreational drone users. The country is also considered one of the very first to introduce rules on RPAS.
Yes, drones are legal to fly in South Africa as long as you follow the basic rules.
To get in touch with the Civil Aviation Authority, limit your reach out during official work hours.
Johannesburg
Email: rpasinbox@caa.co.za
Tel: +270115451000
Cape Town
Email: rpasinbox@caa.co.za
Tel: +270219344744
Other restricted spaces are the national parks as the drones can irritate the animals with their noise. Special conservation drones are used in the parks and these require the user to have a remote pilot license and special permission to operate. Further clarification can be found on the SANPARKS website
You must have permission to fly over someone’s property.
Yes, provided you personally own the drone.
A look at the app will point out the areas that need attention and those that do not. Avoid going near any military infrastructure or any property of national significance.
Going by law, South Africa requires any use of drones that results in a transactional exchange be classified as a commercial drone use.
If you fall under this category you need a drone license for yourself and registration for the drone. In the event you are a foreigner with a drone pilot license, you should have it validated and approved by contacting gouwene@caa.co.za
The eligibility test for commercial drone use is:
Contact a registered training academy in the country. You can find them here. The license is normally in two parts:
The license remains valid for two years from the date it was certified. Upon certification, fill out this form.
To be eligible for drone registration, you should be 16 years old.
As with everywhere else, the severity of your punishments depends on the charge levied against you. If you are lucky, you will part with a hefty fine of 3,500 Rand. If unlucky, you are looking at 10 years worth of jail time.
My following two recommendations are 2 great compact drones that are quite silent and also small enough to travel with and not stand out as annoying.
4k
31min
10km
No follow me
I have covered it much more in depth in my article review and even compared it with the Mavic Air 2.
DJI lowered it's price since it was first released.
The best way to figure out what areas you can fly in, while you're here is by consulting DJI offilicial map.
They do a great job mapping the places that one should avoid while flying in every country:
These would be the current updated drone laws for South Africa. I suggest checking my full map with all the countries drone laws to see where it's best to travel to.
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