You can use this form to request a clearance to fly a model aircraft or UAS.

Provided your flight meets all the conditions for a flight with general air traffic control clearance in the outer area of control zones (CTR) in accordance with NfL 2026-1-3960, Section 2, the mandatory clearance has already been granted by DFS via the NfL and no additional application is required.

We therefore recommend that you check, before submitting your application, whether your planned flight within a DFS-control zone (CTR) meets the following conditions in particular:

• UAS flight operations do not take place over or within a lateral distance of 1000 m from the boundaries of airports, nor within a lateral distance of less than 1000 m from the centre lines of all airport runways, each extended by 5 km in both approach and departure directions.
• UAS flight operations take place in the outer area of the CTR (in Zone 2, 3 or 4).

  The zones and aerodrome elevations are published as a supplement (SUP) in the Luftfahrthandbuch Deutschland (AIP).

• The following heights are not exceeded:
  • In Zone 2: 25 m above the aerodrome elevation or above ground (whichever is lower).
  • In Zone 3: 45 m above the aerodrome elevation or above ground (whichever is lower).
  • In Zone 4: 100 m above the aerodrome elevation or 50 m above ground (whichever is higher). If the take-off location is below the aerodrome elevation, the maximum height is 100 m above ground.
  The specified flight altitudes may only be exceeded if the UAS flight takes place exclusively within a maximum lateral distance of 30m and a maximum vertical distance of 15m from an obstacle. (The "obstacle flight" field may only be checked if these maximum distances to an obstacle are maintained throughout the entire flight.)
• Ground visibility is at least 800 m.
• The maximum distance between the remote pilot and the UAS in VLOS mode complies with the provisions of the NfL “Joint Principles of the Federal Government and the Länder for the Operation of Unmanned Aircraft” in its current version.
• Before the flight begins, the remote pilot shall verify whether any operational restrictions, particularly in the form of restricted areas established by the Federal Ministry of Transport, have been implemented along the planned flight path or within the airspace to be used, or whether there are any geographical areas subject to Section 21h of the German Air Traffic Regulations (LuftVO), and shall comply with or avoid these accordingly.
• During BVLOS flights, the UAS remote pilot must be aware of the spatial position of their unmanned aircraft at all times.
• The UAS flight is not conducted autonomously.

If one or more of the conditions in the above-mentioned NfL cannot be met, please provide the following information of your flight.

The application will be forwarded to the responsible air traffic control unit for processing and, if possible, an individual clearance will be issued.

When using a foreign UAS Operator Registration Number (eID), please refer to the information provided under “Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)”.

Generally a processing time of 14 calendar days is to be expected.