Do I need a license to fly a drone?

You don’t need a license to fly a drone in New Zealand. But you do need to follow the Part 101 drone rules, which are New Zealand Civil Aviation Rules. However, there are training requirements for flying within 4 km of aerodromes.

If you need to fly outside the Part 101 unmanned aircraft rules, you will need to hold a Part 102 unmanned aircraft operator certificate.

Intro to Part 101 rules for unmanned aircraft

Intro to Part 102 certification for unmanned aircraft

Training organisations

We recommend getting some training so you understand your responsibilities when flying your drone. A number of organisations provide drone training in New Zealand that are Part 141 Certified. If you don’t have a pilot’s licence, this is how to meet the training requirements for drone flights within 4 km of aerodromes.

Model Flying New Zealand(external link) (Part 101)

RPA Skills, Ryan Groves(external link) (Part 101)(external link)

Aviation Safety Management Systems Ltd (ASMS)(external link) (Parts 101 and 102, UAV Agricultural Pilot Training)

Flight Test New Zealand (external link)(Parts 101 and 102)(external link)

FlyUAV(external link) (Parts 101 and 102)

Massey University(external link) (Parts 101 and 102)

Drone Training New Zealand(external link) (Parts 101 and 102)(external link)

DroneZup(external link) (Parts 101 and 102, UAV Agricultural Pilot Training)