The Troubles with Drone Flying

Getting ready for flight: the DJI Flip drone and controller, fully set up before take-off.

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I had the vision all mapped out. Batteries charged, memory cards cleared, drone packed neatly alongside my camera. I could already picture the sweeping shots: woodland canopies from above, coastlines curling into the horizon, maybe even that perfect sweeping reveal you see in every travel documentary.

That was the dream.

 The reality? Another email sitting in my inbox with a now-familiar line:

“Drones are not allowed on our land or in the skies above it.”

That is when it hits you. Flying a drone in the UK is not so much about soaring through the skies as it is about running headfirst into rejection, from policies, from landowners, and from misunderstandings that refuse to die.

✈️ The Rules Are Clear (That’s Not the Issue)

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) rules are very clear and very easy to understand. They are there in black and white for anyone to read, with no ambiguity whatsoever.

I know them, I stick to them, and I double check every single time using the Drone Assist app. Drone Assist is the official mapping tool that shows you airspace restrictions and fly-safe zones across the UK. It is a brilliant resource, and it removes all doubt about whether you are flying legally.

I even spoke to the CAA in person at a photography show. They were careful with their wording, as they cannot comment on specific sites, but they confirmed two key things. First, Drone Assist is exactly the tool we should be using to check restrictions. Second, if you take off from public land and you are not bound by centuries-old bylaws that could never have imagined drones existing, you are within your rights to fly.

So, the issue is not the rules. The issue is what happens once you try to fly within them.

🌳 Airspace vs Land – The Misinformation Gap

Here is the crucial point: landowners do not own the airspace above their land. The skies are regulated nationally, not locally.

What they can do is stop you from taking off or landing on their property. That part I completely respect. I also respect restrictions that are genuinely necessary, such as around nesting birds or endangered species. But once you are in the air, flying legally, that airspace is not theirs to control.

According to their published policies, organisations like the National Trust and the Woodland Trust operate blanket bans on drones unless you have explicit prior permission. On paper that sounds fair enough, but in practice, when you do request that permission, it is almost always met with a refusal.

So, what is the point in even asking?

📧 Death by Rejection Email

I have tried to do the right thing. I do not just turn up at a site and launch. I email, and sometimes I even call, only to be told to put it in an email anyway.

The replies are polite, but they all blur together. A common line, taken directly from policy wording, reads something like:

“Thank you for your enquiry. Drones are not permitted on or above our land.”

It becomes a cycle: copy the response, paste the policy, delete the dream shot from my plans.

The ironic part is that the more professional and transparent you are, the more rejection you collect. Meanwhile, those who do not bother asking just fly. No emails. No rejection. No problem.

🤔 So Why Don’t I Just Fly Anyway?

It is not the conflict that stops me. I am not worried about an argument with a warden or a passer-by.

The reason I ask first is because many of the shots I want can only be achieved if I control the drone from the land in question. I want people to know I am there and what I am doing.

It is about transparency. It is about being professional. It is about avoiding that sense of sneaking around with something that was meant to be part of my creative toolkit.

⚖️ The Trespass Myth

Some of these policies, and several websites, go further and state that flying over land at all amounts to trespass.

Legally, that is not true. Overflight would only count as trespass if you were so low you interfered with the landowner’s normal use of their land. A drone responsibly flown at legal height is not trespass.

But policies are not written in law books, they are written in head offices. And so, the myth lives on, intimidating anyone who might otherwise fly safely.

The threat of “civil action” gets thrown around too. But in reality, taking someone to court over a legal, safe drone flight is a case they would struggle to win.

And here is the irony: if someone actually demanded I land a drone mid-flight over public space, that would be interfering with an aircraft.

🚶 Even the Options Left Aren’t Options

On paper, there are still legal routes. Take off from a public footpath. Fly over woodland, as long as the airspace is clear according to the CAA. Stick to open access land.

But in practice, the same brick walls appear. National Trust. Woodland Trust. Local councils. According to their policies, they do not just ban take-off, they extend that ban to flights over their land too. Even when you launch from public space, you will often be told it is not allowed.

And what do you do when someone challenges you mid-flight and demands you bring it down? Argue? Quote the rules? None of that helps when you are trying to concentrate on flying safely while someone insists you should not be there.

At that point, the stress outweighs the footage. And the drone stays zipped in its case.

🌍 Other Countries, Other Stories

What makes it more frustrating is knowing it does not have to be this way. Other countries are far more relaxed. Yes, they have safety rules. Yes, they regulate airports and crowds. But they do not pile on layers of policy that contradict national law.

Here in the UK, the moment you unpack a drone, it is treated like a stealth bomber. The fear comes not from the law itself, but from a misunderstanding of it.

Drone education is desperately needed. Right now, the people who play by the rules are often punished, while the reckless few give the whole hobby a bad reputation. At the same time, some of the most experienced drone pilots I know obey every rule to the letter yet carry on without hesitation because they understand the law and their rights inside out.

🎥 Inconsistent Policies, Inconsistent Experiences

To make matters worse, enforcement is not even consistent.

I have seen YouTubers like DJE Media put this to the test. At some National Trust sites, staff appear more welcoming. At others, the same request is denied. You would think all sites would operate consistently from the same policy, but in practice experiences seem to vary.

That inconsistency makes the whole thing even murkier.

To be fair, it is not all bad news. I have had good experiences with some local councils, where staff understood the difference between land policy and airspace rules, and even permitted me to fly from their land. Those encounters show what it could be like if more organisations invested in proper drone education and consistent messaging.

📸 For the Photographers

If you are a photographer who has tried and failed to get permission, I get it. It is draining. You send the emails, you tick every box, you invest in the licenses and insurance, only to be treated like one of the reckless few.

Here is my advice. Stick to the rules. Always check the Drone Assist app before you fly and make sure you are in an unrestricted area. Take off only from places where you are legally entitled to be. Keep the airspace clear, respect privacy, and avoid people and wildlife at all times. That includes being mindful of nesting birds and endangered species, which is one of the few areas where restrictions are absolutely justified.

And just as important, be prepared. Be prepared for people to question you, and be prepared for rejection even when you know you are doing everything right. It does not mean you are wrong. It just means the current climate around drones is confused, and that confusion often lands at the feet of the people who care the most about flying responsibly.

Until drone laws and guidance become more widely understood across the UK, and until proper education reaches landowners and the public, these situations are unfortunately going to keep happening.

(This is not legal advice, just my personal experience as a photographer trying to do things properly.)

🌅 Final Thought

Buying a drone was meant to give me another point of view and another weapon in my photography arsenal. It was meant to be the tool that let me create those perspectives I could never reach from the ground.

Instead, it has sat almost unused, apart from the odd time it has come on holiday with us.

Drone flying promised freedom: new horizons, fresh angles, the joy of seeing the world differently.

But too often in the UK, it feels less like freedom and more like a polite rejection email. Less about rising above the trees, more about debating whose policy counts more than the law itself.

Some days, I leave the drone in the bag and pick up my camera instead. Perhaps that is the most ironic part of all. The images that feel most freeing are still the ones taken with a camera that is planted firmly on the ground.