Canadian Aviation Laws, Prohibitions, and Penalties
Canada, like any other country, has laws that regulate the possession and operation of unmanned air vehicles (UAVs). The laws that regulate aviation are referred to as the Aeronautics Act (Dodek, 2013). The regulations of UAV’s falls under the federal government and are regulated by the Canadian Air Authorities. It is mandatory for a UAV operator to have the special flights operation certificates that define the weight of drone and its use, whether recreational or non-recreational
The actions prohibited include the dangerous operation of aircraft and endangering the safety of other aircraft (Bartsch, 2012). In this case, penalties could be monetary fines, jail term, and imprisonment. Secondly, the private use of jamming equipment to disrupt drones is illegal in Canada. (Bartsch, 2012) The usage of drones should be limited to an accountability structure that ensures that they do not infringe on people’s privacy. The penalty is a fine of Can $5000 for individuals and $Can 25000 for Corporations (Dodek, 2013). Any individual found to operate a UAV in a reckless or negligent manner is also subject to the above-quoted fines. The other prohibition is operating a UAV in an airspace that has been restricted like over a forest fire or too close to a built-up area. This is punishable under the Aviation Act (Dodek, 2013).
Operation and control of a UAV through a monitor or smartphone is prohibited (Yechout, 2003). Instead, the drones should always be controlled by a human operator every time. The penalty for this falls under the Aeronautics Act and is punishable by fines up to can$15000 for corporations. Finally, operating a drone during the night or in a bad weather is punishable by a fine of Can$5000 for individuals or more for an organization as it portrays negligence (Dodek, 2013).
In conclusion, Transport Canada has put in place measures that will ensure safety when operating UAV. The pilots that operate the UAV will be considered as ‘pilots’ under the Aeronautics Act. Transport Canada has also put into place new regulations that will do away with the present distinction between recreational and non-recreational use based on weights of the unmanned air vehicles.
References
Bartsch, R. I. C. (2012). International aviation law: A practical guide. Farnham, Surrey: Ashgate Pub.
Dodek, A. (2013). The Canadian Constitution. Toronto: Dundurn.
Yechout, T. R., & Morris, S. L. (2003). Introduction to aircraft flight mechanics: Performance, static stability, dynamic stability, and classical feedback control. Reston, VA: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.