The most common mistake foreign residents make when they first fly a drone in Daejeon is to find a wide, empty field, decide it looks harmless, and take off. In Korea, whether you may fly is not determined by what the ground looks like but by the class of airspace above it and by the aviation law that governs that airspace. A place that appears completely unproblematic at eye level may sit under a zone that requires prior approval. If you have just moved to Daejeon, this article sets out the order in which to check things — before you choose a location, not after.
Airspace comes before location
Korean airspace is densely mapped with zones where flight is prohibited outright or permitted only with prior approval. Daejeon is no exception; there are controlled zones and other restricted areas within and around the city. Because the boundaries and conditions of individual zones can change, this article deliberately does not name particular parks, riversides or facilities as flyable or off-limits. You must check the coordinates of your intended launch point yourself, every time.
- Airspace check: use the Drone One-Stop Civil Service (drone.onestop.go.kr), the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport portal, and query by coordinates rather than by place name.
- 비행승인 (bihaeng seungin, flight approval): required if your site falls in controlled or prohibited airspace, or if you intend to climb above 150 m above ground level. Applications are filed through the same One-Stop portal.
- Aerial photography permit: if you are recording images, a separate permit administered by the Ministry of National Defense may be required. It is a distinct process from flight approval — holding one does not cover the other.
- Site management: parks, riverside land and school grounds are governed by their own facility rules on top of aviation law. Even where the airspace is clear, the body managing the site can prohibit flying.
What happens if you skip approval
Treating these steps as a formality is a costly assumption. The penalties are written into law and they apply to residents and visitors alike.
- Flying without flight approval, or above 150 m: an administrative fine of up to KRW 3 million.
- Flying in restricted airspace without approval: a criminal fine of up to KRW 5 million.
- Flying without the mandatory insurance where it is required: an administrative fine of up to KRW 5 million.
If an accident occurs on top of that, civil liability for damages follows separately. Checking the airspace and filing an application takes tens of minutes at most. The cost of skipping it is not remotely comparable, and it can complicate your visa and employment situation in ways a Korean national would not face.
Night and beyond-visual-line-of-sight flights need separate approval
Flying after sunset, and flying beyond visual line of sight — where you cannot see the aircraft with your own eyes — are not covered by ordinary flight approval. They require 특별비행승인 (teukbyeol bihaeng seungin, special flight approval), granted by the head of the Regional Aviation Administration. Processing normally takes 30 days, and in special cases up to 90 days. If you are planning a night-time cityscape shoot or an evening event, count backwards from that. It is emphatically not something that can be arranged on the day.
What people most often miss
It is easy to assume that clearing the airspace question is the end of it. In practice the problems usually arise elsewhere.
- 기체 신고 (gichae singo, device registration): required for any aircraft used commercially regardless of weight, and for non-commercial aircraft above 2 kg maximum take-off weight (MTOW).
- Insurance: commercial operation requires cover of at least KRW 150 million bodily injury per person and KRW 20 million property damage per incident.
- 조종자 증명 (jojongja jeungmyeong, remote pilot certificate): the class you need depends on aircraft weight. From 250 g to 2 kg MTOW is Class 4, completed by online course with no practical exam. Above that, Classes 3 through 1 involve a practical exam, with 6, 10 and 20 hours of logged flight required respectively, and a minimum age of 14 (10 for Class 4). Exams are run by the Korea Transportation Safety Authority (TS) at lic.kotsa.or.kr.
- Flying over people: crowds are a hazard to avoid regardless of what your approval says.
- Privacy: filming towards residential windows leads to disputes quickly, and cultural expectations here may differ from what you are used to.
If you are a beginner, the safest way to build hours is in a controlled practice area with a clear operator. Using the training field of a Daejeon drone academy means the airspace and safety management have already been resolved, and you can concentrate on flying — which is also the most straightforward route if your Korean is not yet strong enough to negotiate site access alone.
Pre-flight checklist
- Have you checked the airspace class of your exact launch coordinates on the One-Stop service?
- Have you confirmed the flight approval and the aerial photography permit separately?
- For night or BVLOS flight, have you allowed the full special flight approval lead time?
- Are your device registration and liability insurance current?
- Have you checked wind speed, precipitation and sunset time for the day?
- Have you verified battery levels, return-to-home settings and your launch point coordinates?
Light Beyond Drones is a drone academy in Seo-gu, Daejeon, that also delivers industrial drone solutions and commercial aerial filming. Airspace queries, flight approvals and aerial photography permits are routine work for us, so we can give practical guidance to anyone unsure where or how they are allowed to fly. If you are new to Daejeon and finding the procedures hard to navigate, or you would rather learn the basics in a properly managed training environment, please request a consultation.
References
This article draws on the following government and public-agency sources. Laws and examination standards can be revised, so please check the original pages before you apply.
