Legalities
- Details
- Published on Tuesday, 21 May 2013 19:39
The following information only applies to Australia and should be used as guide only. Mongrel Gear takes no responsibility for what you choose to do with this information. The legalities for this sport are full of grey areas and holes big enough to drive a truck through, still, you should ensure you educate yourself with necessary information when it comes to the legalities of flying FPV in Australia. When it comes to the “grey areas” you must make up your own mind as to what you think is legal and what is not.
NOTE: – The information below applies to operating the equipment without a license. Licenses such as HAM license are not taken into account here, as the average FPVer would not have a HAM license.
Q: – Is it legal to Fly FPV in Australia?
That depends who you ask. The Civil Aviation and Safety Authority (CASA) does not recognise what we call FPV. The Model Aeronautical Association of Australia (MAAA) does allow the flying of FPV under strict regulations, and only at registered flying fields. More information on this can be found at the MAAA website.
Q: – Is my video transmitter legal to operate?
This also depends who you ask. The Australian Communication and Media Authority (ACMA) are the ones that police what frequencies are legal to operate in Australia. Information can be found here on what frequencies are legal etc, and some are legal if the operator has a HAM license etc. Below is a list of common FPV frequencies and their use without a license.
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2.4GHz AV Transmitters
According to the legislation some 2.4GHz with an Analogue Modulation can operate with a power rating up to 1W. These are titled for Telemetry or Telecommand. There is some argument that video transmission with OSD data could be considered Telemetry or Telecommand
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5.8GHz AV Transmitters
The same basically applies here as it does to 2.4GHz transmitters – Only the power differs. The regulations have a similar entry for Telemetry or Telecommand of Analogue Modulation can operate with a power rating up to 2W.
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900MHz AV Transmitters.
900MHz analogue video transmitters are only legal to operate in Australia to a maximum power rating of 3mW, unless it is of a digital modulation. This is far too low for any FPV operations. Most of the 900MHz FPV transmitters are powered at 500mW or more.
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1.2GHz AV Transmitters
There is currently no provision to operate these frequencies in Australia without a license.
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433MHz LRS Systems
Under the current regulations there is no provision for use of these systems without a license as they are too powerful. The regulations state that 433MHz has a maximum power rating of 25mW. Way below what some of the LRS systems operate at.
We will continue to add to this list of frequencies as more come online and more information comes to hand.