Germany postpones registration requirement drone pilots for four months

The German aviation authority LBA has postponed the upcoming registration requirement for drone pilots by four months. According to the European regulation, which comes into force on December 31, all pilots of drones and model airplanes must be registered from that day before flying. However, the LBA states that this is “technically and administratively not possible.”

Germany postpones registration requirement drone pilots for four months

Transition period

It is remarkable that the Luftfahrtbundesamt is at such a late stage with a postponement of the registration requirement. Apparently, the German government is not yet ready to process a large influx of drone and model pilots in a short time, and it has therefore been decided to deviate from the European rules at the last minute.

A message from the LBA states: “Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/947 does not contain a transition period with regard to the registration requirement. This means that registration is only possible from December 31, 2020, but at the same time every operator must register from December 31, 2020 before his unmanned aircraft can be put into service. Immediate registration of all concerned unmanned aircraft operators is not possible for technical and administrative reasons.”

For that reason, the LBA has decided to give drone pilots four months to register. In the meantime, drivers of unmanned aerial vehicles must only ensure that their name and address are stated on the aircraft. From April 30, 2021, you must provide an Operator ID and state it on the drone.

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This article first appeared on dronewatch.nul and is written by Wiebe de Jager who is also a DroneXL contributor.