Drones for educational purpose in Singapore ( for MOE schools only)
Please note this blogpost is only applicable for *MOE registered government schools in Singapore .
Effective 1 February 2021, users who operate their unmanned aircraft (UA) with a total weight of more than 1.5 kilograms and not exceeding 7 kilograms, for recreational or educational purposes, are required to undergo a one-time UA Basic Training to be conducted by CAAS-approved UA Basic Training organisations. Furthermore, a registration label is also required if the weight of the drone is more than 250g.
Government schools in Singapore fulfill the criteria of " educational purpose" , set by CAAS. Click here to read .
In summary, you* do not need to apply for any permit if you fulfill the below 2 conditions.
a) You are only flying the drone indoors. The definition of indoors refers to an enclosed space with no possibility of the drone flying out of the area.
Eg, classroom and hall with windows and doors shut.
Partially covered indoor sports hall is NOT an indoor location
b) The weight of the drone is below 250g.
Here's a detailed video of the different permits.
We had created some videos based on commonly asked questions by educators:
Q1)Can I fly a drone outdoor in my school?
Answer: You can fly your drone outdoor if your school is NOT in a no-fly zone and you fulfill the other criteria.
Please check whether your school is in a no-fly zone -https://youtu.be/w7WjXyKn7EU
Q2) What are Do's and Donts of operating unmanned aircraft- Answer: https://youtu.be/5WtviA5LyaU
Q3) Do I need to register my aircraft?
Answer: You need to register your aircraft if your aircraft is above 250g.
https://youtu.be/H46QjhsC9gM
Q4) My students are below 16 years old of age. Will there be any issues?
The legal age to fly a drone is 16 years old . You will need to make sure that your students are supervised by a competent adult. The competent adult might be required to have the necessary permits such as a UAPL , depending on the type of operation and the type of aircraft.
For your educational needs, visit www.65drones.com to view the lightweight educational drones which do not require any UA registration in Singapore. Portable drone cages are also available for purchase to create your indoor flying area , at the comfort in your school.
If you have more questions, please feel free to reach out to us via the https://www.65drones.com/pages/howcanweassistyou# or simply leave a comment at the bottom.
Comments
Hi Seng Heng,
Please check onemap to see whether your school is in a no fly zone. Generally, dover is NOT a no fly zone.
You are required to register for the aircraft if they are above 250g. For outdoor use, the DJI mavic is a common model and UA registration is required as it is 1kg.
In addition, if you or the personnel who is coaching your students are operating a drone which is more than 1.5kg , he will be required to have additional certification such as the UABT or UAPL .
Can my students fly the drone outdoor? My school is in Dover .
Hi Mr Poh,
If you need more than 10 registration labels , please contact CAAS for bulk purchase. For individual user, it is not more than a few labels per user IC.
You will need to register for your DJI drones ( phantom and spark) as they are above 250g. Parrot mambo is 65 g and hence no registration is required.
You are strongly encouraged to visit https://www.caas.gov.sg/public-passengers/unmanned-aircraft for more details
Who can register for the drones? In our school, we have some phantom, some parrot mambo and a few sparks.