Apr 27, 2018 (the-japan-news.com) - Local governments are agonizing over how to deal with a series of cases in which foreigners have flown drones in tourist spots.
In Japan, flying drones without permission is banned in places where people gather. However, there have been a spate of cases in which foreign tourists, unaware of this regulation, have flown drones. Given the circumstances, some local governments have put up multilingual signs saying flying drones is prohibited and are having their employees patrol to call foreigners’ attention to the rule.
A license is not necessary for flying a drone, but the Civil Aeronautics Law bans flying drones weighing 200 grams or more without permission in crowded areas, at night and in other situations.
During the Hirosaki Cherry Blossom Festival, which is being held in Hirosaki Park in Hirosaki, Aomori Prefecture, employees of the Hirosaki city government are patrolling the park, which is famous for cherry blossoms, to issue warnings if they find visitors flying drones.
The city government is on alert following a case last year in which a foreigner flew a drone above a moat around Hirosaki Castle to shoot a video of cherry blossoms during the festival.
During the Hirosaki Neputa Festival in August last year, a French man allegedly flew a drone without permission at night. Police sent papers on the man on suspicion of violating the Civil Aeronautics Law. The man was quoted by the police as saying that he was shooting a video of the festival.
The city government is checking on the internet if any videos shot by drones in parks and other locations have been posted. If such a video is found, the city government takes action such as writing comments to say that the drone was flown without permission. The city government said it has so far confirmed several cases of unauthorized use of drones.
