After drones were flown in China at heights above 8,000 metres (26,247 feet) – approaching that of Mount Everest – the authorities are moving to crack down on illegal flights that threaten the safety of commercial aviation.
The controversy highlights the regulatory dilemma China faces as it pushes to develop a low-altitude economy while ensuring aviation safety. Industry insiders say that with technological progress and upgraded oversight, China may eventually allow drones to fly as high as 6,000 metres (19,685 feet).
Chinese regulations cap the altitude at which light drones can be flown at 120 metres (394 feet). Any operation above that ceiling requires formal airspace approval, and only licensed drone pilots can apply. Unauthorised operations above the 120-metre limit – a practice dubbed “black flying” in China – are illegal.
The issue burst into public view recently when a content creator on Douyin, China’s version of TikTok, exposed a drone pilot who repeatedly posted videos showing drones climbing above 8,000 metres over the provinces of Hunan and Guangdong – which feature some of China’s busiest commercial air corridors – while using forged flight-approval documents. Hunan police have opened an investigation.
By matching the footage with flight dates, altitude readings and commercial air routes, the blogger found that the drone had flown dangerously close to multiple passenger aircraft, in some cases as little as 200 to 500 metres (656 to 1,640 feet) away. One Shenzhen–Beijing flight could have passed within five metres (16.4 feet) of the drone’s projected path.
“If you ever look out a plane window and see a drone, that’s no longer a joke,” the blogger warned. One of the illegal flight zones – above the city of Yingde in Guangdong – lies directly beneath key flight paths for major Greater Bay Area airports, with planes passing every few minutes.
State media outlets including Xinhua and Workers’ Daily followed up with articles condemning illegal high-altitude drone flights as a threat to aviation safety and public security. Hong Kong film actor Waise Lee also posted a video condemning the drone operator for “gambling with the lives of people on aeroplanes” that fuelled further online debate.
Tan Chaochen, the chairman of the Shenzhen Baoan Low-Altitude Economy Industry Association, said initial reports suggest the drone used in the 8,000-metre flights was made by DJI. “From a technical perspective, this actually illustrates the high performance of DJI’s drones,” he said.
Tan, a former senior civil aviation official and an expert reviewer for China’s customs drone technology centre, said illegal drone activity was a global regulatory challenge and China needed to implement real-name registration for all drone operations.
As Beijing accelerates the development of China’s low-altitude economy – generally defined as both crewed and uncrewed aerial activities below 1,000 metres (3,280 feet) – Tan said some regions could eventually relax altitude restrictions to 1,000 metres or even 3,000 metres (9,843 feet).
“With further improvements in technology and regulation, China could even open airspace up to 6,000 metres,” he added.
China is not alone in imposing a 120-metre cap. The United States, the European Union, Canada and Australia all maintain similar limits, with higher flights requiring authorisation.
“China’s airspace reform is progressing rapidly,” Tan said. “As more airspace is opened up, large-scale development of the low-altitude economy will accelerate.”
In another sign of intensified oversight, authorities in Shanghai – another region with heavy air traffic – recently disclosed several cases involving illegal businesses that helped drone operators bypass battery-management systems and altitude restrictions under the guise of “drone repair”.
China also strengthened penalties in June through revisions to its Public Security Administration Punishments Law that will, from the start of next year, for the first time explicitly classify illegal drone flights as endangering public safety.
In a research paper published in July, Zhenfei Yao, an associate professor at Qufu Normal University’s school of management, said China had a “severe lack” of dedicated sites suitable for large-scale eVTOL and drone operations.
China had roughly 0.5 general aviation airports per 10,000 sq km, Yao’s study found, compared with 20.6 in the US and 6.2 in the EU. And existing facilities were heavily concentrated in eastern China, leaving central and western areas sparsely covered.
“Low-altitude operations require safe, efficient and low-cost communication, navigation and surveillance systems,” Yao said in the paper. “These technologies and infrastructure are still in exploratory or pilot phases, and remain major bottlenecks to safe and efficient operations.”
The sector has drawn increasing investment interest. According to a report released in July by 36Kr Europe, the European branch of Chinese media and business services platform 36Kr, China had 9,400 low-altitude economy enterprises in 2020. That number grew to 14,700 last year, and reached 16,600 in the first quarter of this year.