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Free drone zones expanded to boost use in disaster response, agriculture, leisure
Members of the Republic of Korea Special Warfare Command operate a drone in Suncheon, South Jeolla Province, Thursday, to search for victims who went missing during floods. Courtesy of the Republic of Korea Army
By Ko Dong-hwan
Gov’t diversifies service via broader tests
The number of designated special drone test sites in Korea has increased to 67 in the latest round of government approvals, as the country moves to integrate the versatile technology across a wider range of industries and services.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said on Tuesday it has added 18 sites across nine municipalities to the list of Drone Special Free Zones. The zones are free from the country’s six key drone flight regulations — including preflight approval, special permits and safety license — allowing drone developers to test their technologies in real-world environments beyond the confines of laboratories.
The list now has 67 sites across 32 municipalities outside Seoul where drones can be tested for various purposes — from logistics to monitoring for signs of natural disasters, 3D mapping over urban or uninhabited regions, infrastructure maintenance and inspection over mountains or rivers.
With the renewed list, Pocheon in Gyeonggi Province has the most sites in the country with five, while Daejeon’s Seo District, Gyeongju and Yeongju in North Gyeongsang Province, and Goheung in South Jeolla have four.
The government has been designating free drone zones since 2021. The authority first designated 31 sites in 14 municipalities in 2021. In 2023, 18 more sites in nine municipalities were added.
A video screen inside an emergency rescue vehicle of the Gangwon Fire Headquarters shows a real-time video feed from a flying drone as the authority searches for victims of floods who went missing in Gapyeong, Gyeonggi Province, July 21. Courtesy of Gangwon State Fire Headquarters
The ministry said that with the latest designation of new zones, it expects the country’s drone industry to further diversify into services spanning urban areas, agricultural regions, coastal zones and mountainous terrain.
“With the newly added zones free of regulation hurdles, drone technologies will be tested more rigorously and implemented into commercial sectors as a new service people can actually experience and appreciate,” the ministry said.
There are currently more than 110 private drone developers and companies with related technologies in the country, according to the ministry.
Different municipalities are testing different uses for drones. Dangjin in South Chungcheong Province is working on ways to remove hornet colonies whose number is on the rise, increasingly threatening local farms. Gangjin in South Jeolla Province seeks to monitor varying water conditions and algae concentration in local streams.
Yeongju in North Gyeongsang Province is working on pest control and crop growth monitoring for smart farming, while Chuncheon in Gangwon Province is developing drone race courses to boost the city’s leisure sport industry.
Joo Jong-wan, head of the Aviation Policy Division of the land ministry’s Civil Aviation Office, said it is the government’s role to deregulate the industry where needed so that private developers can lead in testing drones and introducing new services.
“We will keep expanding regulation sandboxes in the country so that sectors bound by regulations and on high demand can be deregulated and developed fast so the public can benefit from the innovation,” Joo said.