by Nick Castele
Anyone flying drones in Cleveland could face minor misdemeanor charges if they don鈥檛 first register the devices with the Federal Aviation Administration.
And flying within five miles of an airport could also carry city penalties, unless drone operators clear the flight with the FAA first.
That鈥檚 under an ordinance that passed Cleveland City Council unanimously Monday night.
Cleveland鈥檚 new laws aren鈥檛 meant to supersede the federal government, which regulates airspace. Matt Zone, the chairman of council鈥檚 safety committee, said the legislation is meant to give local police the ability to respond to potential violations of FAA rules already in effect.
鈥淧eople who have drones or bought their kids drones for holidays, or Christmas gifts, the kids can still fly them,鈥� Zone said. He said the ordinance would 鈥渃reate some clarity on what the rules are and what they aren鈥檛.鈥�
Flying a drone within five miles of Burke Lakefront or Cleveland-Hopkins airport would be a fourth-degree misdemeanor on the first offense鈥攗nless the FAA grants a drone operator permission.
鈥淒oesn鈥檛 mean that you can鈥檛 fly it, but you have to let them know,鈥� Zone said, 鈥渂ecause they will determine whether or not it鈥檚 going to violate any potential airspace in that particular area.鈥�
Much of the city is within five miles of Burke Lakefront or Cleveland-Hopkins Airports鈥攊ncluding downtown, nearby neighborhoods and the far west side.
Drone operators who break FAA rules could face thousands of dollars in fines or prison time, .
Matt Mishak, an attorney and the owner of a company called Dronewerx, said there鈥檚 a reason the FAA might want to work more closely with local police.
鈥淭hey certainly do not have the staff that could police drone sightings or look into every unauthorized drone use in an expedient manner,鈥� he said. 鈥淪o what they鈥檙e doing is they鈥檙e looking to partner with local law enforcement, because they鈥檙e the first on the scene.鈥�
An earlier version of this story misspelled the name of Matt Mishak's company. It is Dronewerx, not Droneworks.
