The National Park Service generally prohibits launching, landing, or operating a drone from or on NPS-administered lands and waters unless approved in writing. That ground-use rule covers recreational and commercial pilots. The FAA controls the airspace, so a complete answer has to check both the park's current compendium and every applicable flight rule.
Key facts
- The NPS rule
- No launching, landing, or operating from or on NPS-administered lands and waters unless approved in writing
- Current framework
- NPS Reference Manual 60 Chapter 12 plus each park's superintendent compendium
- Applies to
- Recreational AND commercial: all purposes
- Covers
- All lands and waters the National Park Service administers
- Exceptions
- Written NPS approval through the applicable mission, permit, agreement, or authorization path
- Airspace
- Separate FAA rules still apply; NPS ground approval is not airspace authorization
- Alternatives
- Some National Forest, BLM, state, and local land can work after unit-level verification
What exactly is prohibited
The NPS rescinded Policy Memorandum 14-05 in 2024 and incorporated the closure framework into Reference Manual 60, Chapter 12. It directs each superintendent to place the required language in the park compendium under 36 CFR 1.5, or 36 CFR 13.50 in Alaska. The standard closure addresses three acts:
Launching a drone from anywhere inside the park.
Landing a drone anywhere inside the park.
Operating or controlling a drone from NPS-administered land or water.
An outside launch is not an automatic green light
The NPS closure controls launch, landing, and operation from its lands and waters; the FAA controls the airspace. An outside launch does not erase prohibited or restricted airspace, TFRs, wildlife protections, visual-line-of-sight limits, reckless-operation rules, noise or resource impacts, or another site-specific restriction. Verify both the launch site and current FAA conditions before treating any route as flyable.
Why the ban exists
The NPS manages visitor safety, natural sounds, wildlife, cultural resources, and the character of each park. Drone use can conflict with those purposes through noise, disturbance, crashes, crowd risk, or interference with park operations. Current park compendia implement the closure locally, while RM-60 describes the written approval paths for administrative, research, contracted, emergency, and special uses.
Where you can fly instead
“National Park” is a specific designation; it does not cover all public land. Many other federal and state lands allow drones, and they're often right next to the park you wanted to shoot.
Often possible after verification
- Open National Forest System land outside wilderness
- BLM land without a conflicting designation or closure
- State, county, and local land whose manager permits launch
- Private land with the landowner's permission
Usually unavailable for launch or landing
- NPS-administered land without written approval
- National Wildlife Refuges without authorization
- Congressionally designated wilderness
- Any unit under a closure, fire restriction, or TFR
Always check the specific land manager
Rules differ by agency, designation, and individual unit. National Forests can contain wilderness; BLM land can contain monuments or special management areas; state and tribal land uses separate rulebooks. Confirm the exact manager before you fly, then check the airspace too.
Tool
Can I fly here?
Check the airspace and land restrictions at a specific spot.
Compare managers
Public land launch rules
Compare National Forest, BLM, refuge, wilderness, state, and tribal land.
Wildlife layer
Hawks, geese, bears, nests, and refuges
Check the species, behavior, land manager, hunting rules, and the moment a reaction becomes the abort signal.
Sources
Rules current as of July 10, 2026; verify at faa.gov/uas. Educational, not legal advice.