The use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems is increasing across the US and on university campuses. Drone clubs at UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC San Diego and UC Merced, are making drones a part of campus life. The University is committed to promoting this new technology by dedicating resources to assist faculty, staff, and students who want to use drones and with forward-thinking policies that will address safety and risk management concerns.

 

map icon   Drones for Research & Business

Go to Drones For Research & Business if you want to fly drones on or off campus for scientific research and/or educational or business purposes.

 

game controller icon   Recreational Drones

Go to Recreational Drones if you want to fly drones or model aircraft on campus for fun and recreation.

 

Jurisdiction Over Drone Operations

The FAA claims sole jurisdiction over the use of the national airspace system (49 U.S.C. 40103 (b)). However, the FAA does not typically regulate what happens on the ground. "Laws traditionally related to state and local police power - including land use, zoning, privacy, trespass and law enforcement operations - are not subject to Federal Regulation" (third column, page 42194, Federal Register, Vol. 81, No 124). The FAA states: “You don't need permission from the FAA to fly your UAS (aka drone) for fun or recreation” (see https://www.faa.gov/uas/recreational_fliers/). This does not mean that local municipalities and agencies cannot themselves regulate and restrict the operation of drones within their boundaries or on their property. A number have completely banned drones:

Others require permission:

Others have established limitations:

Research/Business Use Vs. Recreational Use

Drones flown for non-recreational purposes (business, research, education, etc.) are subject to more FAA regulations and restrictions than those flown recreationally (https://www.faa.gov/uas/). Unfortunately, the distinction between recreational and non-recreational use is not always clear. The FAA fined a drone operator who thought his use was recreational $55,000 because the FAA said he was operating non-recreationally. If this were to occur at UCSB, the fine might even be higher because of the proximity of the airport.

Managing Drone Operations at UCSB

The campus has established a drone Flight Request review and approval process to minimize the risks that arise out of drone use (see Drones For Research & Business and/or Recreational Drones). By running all drone flight operations through a review and approval process the campus promotes their safe and legal use and ensures the consistent interpretation of local, state, and federal laws and regulations.

In addition to concerns about personal safety, property damage, privacy, and noise complaints that apply to all drone operations, the airspace around UCSB is particularly complex and unforgiving. UCSB is situated right next door to the airport and as a consequence the Santa Barbara Airport must be notified of all on-campus drone operations (Federal Public Law 112-95, Section 336). All drone operations must avoid interfering with aircraft flight patterns (14 CFR 101.43).

Enforcement of drone laws will be local and based on the specific circumstances of any infraction. Law enforcement response could range from politely asking someone to stop, to an arrest if a drone is being used to spy on people (in California, the protection of privacy extends to the airspace. A violation of federal law will be reported to the FAA regardless of where it occurs. According to 49 U.S.C. 44103(d), the registration of any aircraft must be made available to law enforcement when requested. Additional information about law enforcement in general, can be found at: https://www.faa.gov/uas/resources/policy_library/

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Drones for Research & Business

Technological advances have led to a significant increase in the use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (commonly known as drones) on University campuses for research, educational, scientific, and business purposes. Drones are used for infrastructure inspections, agriculture surveys, digital archeology, photography, jour¬nalism, etc. The use of drones for such purposes will increase in the coming years. Federal laws and regulations that govern their use are extensive and complex. University faculty, staff, and students who use University drones must comply with these laws and regulations. Employees who do not operate University drones legally may have no coverage under the University’s Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) Liability Insurance and may be held personally liable for claims or losses arising out of their activities. This section contains information about how to use University drones legally and safely for research, educational, scientific, and business purposes.

Flying for Fun or Recreation

Go to Recreational Drones if you want to fly a drone or model aircraft on-campus for fun or recreation.

UC Center of Excellence on UAS Safety

The University has established the UC Center of Excellence on Unmanned Aircraft System Safety to provide assistance to University faculty, staff, students, and unaffiliated people who want to use drones for research, educational, scientific, or business purposes. This section describes how the Center can help drone users get approval to operate University drones on and off campus and how to plan flight operations so that they comply with Federal laws and regulations. The Center also advises users about drone registration, pilot-licensing requirements, and risk management concerns that bear on the safe operation of drones. The Center coordinates the approval process with the UCSB Police and the UCSB Risk Management Office for the use of University drones on and off the UCSB campus. The Center is authorized to grant approval for University of California UAS operations in the US.

Director Brandon Stark, UC Merced
Email: UASSafety@ucmerced.edu
Email: bstark@ucmerced.edu
Phone: (209) 201-2051
Website: OPRS: UC UAS Safety
Contact erm@ucop.edu to be added to the UC-UAS-RESEARCH-L listserv

Approving Drone Use for Research & Business

At UCSB, the UC Center of Excellence on Unmanned Aircraft System Safety must review and approve all use of University drones for research, educational, scientific, or business purposes by UCSB faculty, staff, and students. The UC Center of Excellence coordinates approval of University drones with the UCSB Police Department and the campus Risk Management office to ensure that flight operations are legal and safe.

UC EMPLOYEES & STUDENTS

  1. UC faculty, staff, and students who want to fly University drones on or off campus for research, educational, scientific, or business purposes must first register them with the FAA. See "Registering Drones" below for information about the registration process..
  2. After the drone is registered with the FAA, go to the UC Drone Web App to register the drone with the University and to create and submit a Flight Request application. The Flight Request should be submitted at least a week in advance of the planned flight. The App User Guide contains instructions on the use of the UC Drone Web App.
  3. The UC Center of Excellence will review the Flight Request application. The Center may suggest changes to the proposed flight operations to bring the flight into compliance with Federal law and regulations or to make it consistent with best practices.
  4. The applicant must revise the Flight Request to comply with the Center’s recommendations and resubmit the Flight Request to the Center for a final review.
  5. The Center will submit its recommendation to approve or deny the Flight Request application to the UCSB Police and the UCSB Risk Management office.
  6. The UCSB Police and Risk Management will review the Center’s recommendation and inform the Center of their decision to approve or deny the Flight Request application.
  7. The Center will inform the applicant that the Flight Request application has been approved or denied.
  8. If the Flight Request is approved, the applicant must comply with the Center’s final recommendations
  9. At the conclusion of the flight, the applicant must complete a Flight Report through the UC Drone Web App.

Non-Employees & Non-Students

  1. Non-employees and non-students who want to fly non-University drones on campus for research, educational, scientific, or business purposes must first register them with the FAA.
  2. After the drone has been registered with the FAA, non-employees and non-students must complete and submit a Flight Request form to the Center. (Non-employees and non-students do not have access to the UC Drone Web App and cannot use it to submit a Flight Request application to the UC Center of Excellence).
  3. The UC Center of Excellence will review the Flight Request form. The Center may suggest changes to the proposed flight operations to bring the flight into compliance with Federal law and regulations or to make it consistent with best practices.
  4. The applicant must revise the Flight Request form to comply with the Center’s recommendations and resubmit it to the Center for a final review.
  5. The Center will submit its recommendation to approve or deny the Flight Request application to the UCSB Police and the UCSB Risk Management office.
  6. The UCSB Police and Risk Management will review the Center’s recommendation and inform the Center of their decision to approve or deny the Flight Request application.
  7. The Center will inform the applicant that the Flight Request form has been approved or denied.
  8. If the Fight Request is approved, the applicant must comply with the Center’s final recommendations.
  9. At the conclusion of the flight, the applicant must complete and submit a Flight Report form.

Registering Drones

All University-owned unmanned aircraft systems that weigh more than 0.55 lbs. are required by law to be registered with the FAA. All University-owned UAS and any non-University owned drone flown on the UCSB campus must be registered with the UC Center of Excellence.

Registering Recreational Drones with the FAA

  • All drones that weigh more than 0.55 lbs. and less than 55 lbs. must be registered with the FAA at https://registermyuas.faa.gov.
  • Drones that weigh more than 55 lbs. must be registered with the FAA using a paper form (contact the UC Center of Excellence on Unmanned Aircraft System Safety for details).
  • Drones that will be used for non-recreational purposes (scientific research, education, business) must have their own individual registration number).
  • The registration number must be on the drone before it is flown and the number must located so as to be visible, clear and legible.
  • “The Regents of the University of California” must be identified as the owner of drones owned and operated by UCSB or campus departments when they are registered with the FAA.

Registering Drones with the UC Center of Excellence

  • Faculty, staff, and students must register University-owned drones with the UC Center of Excellence using the UC Drone Web App.
  • Non-employees and students must register non-University-owned drones with the UC Center of Excellence when they complete the Flight Request application form.

UC Drone Web App

The UC Center of Excellence on Unmanned Aircraft System Safety has developed a UC Drone Web App to streamline the drone registration, flight approval, and flight reporting processes. The App is designed to be used by UC faculty, staff, and students when they operate University drones. Go to https://ehs.ucop.edu/, sign in and select the Drone symbol. The App is not available to non-University employees and students. The App User Guide contains instructions on the use of the UC Drone Web App. The Web App has the following features:

Manage Flight Requests

  • Select pilot, aircraft, and location; submit flight request.
  • Add comments and attach supplementary files.
  • If flight operations change, edit flight request info and add documents.
  • Status of flight request communicated by email.

Manage Flight Report

  • Submit flight report without having to reenter previously entered info.
  • Log abnormal operations or incidents.
  • Log aircraft damage.
  • Reports for completed flights are maintained and can be viewed at any time.

Manage Pilot/Crew Member Registration

  • Register with campus and input certificate and qualifications.
  • Update pilot registration.
  • Qualification standards are under development.
  • Crew management features will be added in a future release.

Manage Aircraft

  • Register UAS to person/organization/department and track flight activity.

Manage by Web App Administrator

  • Review, approve, or deny flight requests.
  • Register other people as pilots/crew members.
  • Add and manage aircraft.
  • Add comments or documents.

If you have any comments or questions, submit them to the App developers at erm@ucop.edu or to the Center at uassafety@ucmerced.edu.

Use of Drones on Campus

FAA regulations prohibit the use of drones for non-recreational purposes within 5 nautical miles of the Santa Barbara Airport (which encompasses all of UCSB, Isla Vista, Goleta and parts of Santa Barbara) (see FS: Exclusion Zone Around Airport).

The FAA and the Santa Barbara Airport have agreed to allow the use of drones on the UCSB campus by UCSB faculty, students, and staff as long as the drone operator’s proposed flight plan is approved as required above in "Approving Drone Use for Research & Business."

During the course of the approval process the UC Center of Excellence on Unmanned Aircraft System Safety, the UCSB Police, and the UCSB Risk Management Office will review the proposed UAS flight plan. The flight plan is subject to their approval and cannot proceed without it.

All on-campus drone flights are restricted to the area south of Campbell Hall and to the west of Steck Traffic Circle (see FS: Drone Operations on Campus) at a maximum altitude of 100 ft. AGL (due to the proximity of the airport).

The Santa Barbara Airport must be notified of all on-campus UAS flights in advance of the flight. The Airport also requires notification that the flight has concluded. The UAS operator will be given the number to call at the Airport and the coordination procedures after the flight plan has been approved and authorized.

University-Owned UAS Insurance

See "UAS Liability Insurance" under Insurance / Programs & Policies for information about how University-owned UASs are insured.

 

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Recreational Drones

Technological improvements have led to a significant increase in the use of recreational model aircraft and drones (also known as unmanned aerial systems or UASs). Federal laws and regulations that govern the use of UASs are extensive and complex. University faculty, staff, students, and unaffiliated people who want to operate recreational drones or model aircraft on the UC Santa Barbara campus must operate them in accordance with these laws and regulations and the campus approval process. This section explains how to get approval to fly recreational drones and model aircraft on the UC Santa Barbara campus. If you are using University drones for scientific, research, educational, or business purposes, go to Drones for Research & Business.

Flying for Fun or Recreation

Flying for fun or recreation is defined as follows:

  • The pilot will not be paid or receive any compensation for the flight.
  • The flight cannot be performed as a service, paid or unpaid, for any person or organization.
  • The flight must be operated within visual line of sight.
  • The flight must be in compliance with a community-based set of safety guidelines.

All Recreational Flights

  • Keep UAS within sight.
  • No flying over people.
  • No flying over stadiums and sports events.
  • No flying near other aircraft.
  • No flying over moving vehicles.
  • No flying near emergency response efforts.
  • Check for airspace conditions (FAA B4UFLY).
  • Check local regulations.
  • Fly only in reasonable weather conditions.
  • For additional information go to FAA’s FLY FOR FUN at https://www.faa.gov/uas/recreational_fliers/.

Recreational Flights on UCSB Campus

  • All flight requests must be approved; see "Approving Recreational Flights On Campus" below.
  • Faculty, staff, & students can submit flight requests on the UC Drone Web App. (Non-affiliated operators must use a paper form; see "Approving Recreational Flights On Campus" below).
  • All flights must be reported; see "Approving Recreational Flights On Campus" below.
  • Faculty, staff, & students can submit flight reports on the UC Drone Web App. (Non-affiliated operators must use a paper form; see "Approving Recreational Flights On Campus" below).
  • All flights must be reported to the Santa Barbara Airport prior to flying.
  • All flights must be at or below 100 ft.
  • All flights must be at least 50 ft. from buildings.
  • All flights are restricted to the area south of Campbell Hall and to the west of Steck Traffic Circle (see FS: Drone Operations on Campus).
  • No flights at night or in low visibility weather.

Recreational Flights Off-Campus (but within 5 miles of SBA)

Flying for Scientific Research or Business

If you are using University drones for scientific, research, educational, or business purposes, go to Drones for Research & Business.

UC Center of Excellence on UAS Safety

The University has established the UC Center of Excellence on Unmanned Aircraft System Safety to provide assistance to University faculty, staff, students, and unaffiliated people who want to fly drones on campus for fun and recreation. This section will describe how the Center can help drone users get approval to fly recreational drones and model aircraft on campus and how to plan flight operations so that they comply with Federal laws and regulations. The Center also advises users about drone registration, pilot-licensing requirements, and risk management concerns that bear on the safe operation of drones. The Center coordinates the approval process with the UCSB Police and the UCSB Risk Management Office for the use of recreational drones and model aircraft on the UCSB campus.

Director Brandon Stark, UC Merced
Email: UASSafety@ucmerced.edu
Email: bstark@ucmerced.edu
Phone: (209) 201-2051
Website: OPRS: UC UAS Safety
Contact erm@ucop.edu to be added to the UC-UAS-RESEARCH-L listserv

Approving Recreational Flights on Campus

At UCSB, the UC Center of Excellence on Unmanned Aircraft System Safety must review and approve all use of recreational drones and model aircraft on the UCSB campus to ensure that flight operations are legal and safe.

UC Employees & Students

  1. Go to the UC Drone Web App to create and submit a Flight Request application. The Flight Request application should be submitted at least a week in advance of the planned flight.
  2. The UC Center of Excellence will review the Flight Request application. The Center may suggest changes to the proposed flight operations to bring the flight into compliance with Federal law and regulations or to make it consistent with best practices.
  3. The applicant must revise the Flight Request to comply with the Center’s recommendations and resubmit the Flight Request to the Center for a final review.
  4. The Center will submit its recommendation to approve or deny the Flight Request application to the UCSB Police and the UCSB Risk Management office.
  5. The UCSB Police and Risk Management will review the Center’s recommendation and inform the Center of their decision to approve or deny the Flight Request application.
  6. The Center will inform the applicant that the Flight Request application has been approved or denied.
  7. If the Flight Request is approved, the applicant must comply with the Center’s final recommendations.
  8. At the conclusion of the flight, the applicant must complete a Flight Report through the UC Drone Web App.

Non-Employees & Non-Students

  1. People who want to fly a personally-owned recreational drone or model aircraft on campus must complete and submit a Flight Request form to the Center. (People who are not employees or students do not have access to the UC Drone Web App and cannot use it to submit a Flight Request application to the UC Center of Excellence).
  2. The UC Center of Excellence will review the Flight Request form. The Center may suggest changes to the proposed flight operations to bring the flight into compliance with Federal law and regulations or to make it consistent with best practices.
  3. The applicant must revise the Flight Request form to comply with the Center’s recommendations and resubmit the Flight Request to the Center for a final review.
  4. The Center will submit its recommendation to approve or deny the Flight Request application to the UCSB Police and the UCSB Risk Management office.
  5. The UCSB Police and Risk Management will review the Center’s recommendation and inform the Center of their decision to approve or deny the Flight Request application.
  6. The Center will inform the applicant that the Flight Request form has been approved or denied.
  7. If the Fight Request is approved, the applicant must comply with the Center’s final recommendations
  8. At the conclusion of the flight, the applicant must complete and submit a Flight Report form.

Registering Recreational Drones & Model Aircraft

All University-owned UAS and all non-University owned drones or model aircraft flown on the UCSB campus must be registered with the UC Center of Excellence.

  • Employees and students who want to fly a personally-owned recreational drone or model aircraft on the UCSB campus must register it with the UC Center of Excellence using the UC Drone Web App.
  • Non-employees and students must register non-University-owned drones with the UC Center of Excellence when they complete the Flight Request application form.

UC Drone Web App

The UC Center of Excellence on Unmanned Aircraft System Safety has developed a UC Drone Web App to streamline the drone registration, flight approval, and flight reporting processes. The App is designed to be used by UC faculty, staff, and students when they fly personally-owned drones and model aircraft on campus. Go to https://ehs.ucop.edu/, sign in and select the Drone symbol. The App is not available to non-University employees and students. The App User Guide contains instructions on the use of the UC Drone Web App. The Web App has the following features:

Manage Flight Requests

  • Select pilot, aircraft, and location; submit flight request.
  • Add comments and attach supplementary files.
  • If flight operations change, edit flight request info and add documents.
  • Status of flight request communicated by email.

Manage Flight Reports

  • Submit flight report without having to reenter previously entered info.
  • Log abnormal operations or incidents.
  • Log aircraft damage.
  • Reports for completed flights are maintained and can be viewed at any time.

Manage Pilot/Crew Member Registration

  • Register with campus and input certificate and qualifications.
  • Update pilot registration.
  • Qualification standards are under development.
  • Crew management features will be added in a future release.

Manage Aircraft

  • Register UAS to person/organization/department and track flight activity.

Manage by Web App Administrator

  • Review, approve, or deny flight requests.
  • Register other people as pilots/crew members.
  • Add and manage aircraft.
  • Add comments or documents.

If you have any comments, questions or feature requests, you can submit them to the developers at erm@ucop.edu or to the Center at uassafety@ucmerced.edu.

Use of Recreational Drones on Campus

FAA regulations restrict the use of recreational drones and model aircraft within 5 nautical miles of the Santa Barbara Airport (which encompasses all of UCSB, Isla Vista, Goleta and parts of Santa Barbara (see FS: Exclusion Zone Around Airport).

The FAA and the Santa Barbara Airport have agreed to allow the use of drones on the UCSB campus as long as the drone operator’s proposed flight plan is approved as required above in "Approving Recreational Flights on Campus."

During the course of the approval process the UC Center of Excellence on Unmanned Aircraft System Safety, the UCSB Police, and the UCSB Risk Management Office will review the proposed UAS flight plan. The flight plan is subject to their approval and cannot proceed without it.

All on-campus drone flights are restricted to the area south of Campbell Hall and to the west of Steck Traffic Circle (see FS: Drone Operations on Campus) at a maximum altitude of 100 ft. AGL (due to the proximity of the airport).

The Santa Barbara Airport must be notified of all drone and model aircraft flights in advance The Airport also requires notification that a flight has concluded. The drone or model aircraft operator will be given the number to call at the Airport and the coordination procedures after the flight plan has been approved.

 

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