Ultralight aerial vehicle flyers are petitioning the government to relax altitude restrictions and allow them to fly higher.
The nation’s number of certified ultralight aerial vehicles has grown from 22 in 2015 to 65 this year, while the number of certificates issued increased from 181 to 280, marking a steady growth in ultralight aerial vehicle operators, the Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said.
Operators of ultralight aerial vehicles must be a part of legal groups and have a certificate of operation, the CAA said.
Photo courtesy of the Civil Aviation Administration
Those who contravene regulations can be fined between NT$60,000 and NT$300,000 (US$1,870 and US$9,351), it said, adding that it has recorded 54 contraventions and more than NT$5 million in fines over the past decade.
There are 21 locations nationwide capable of hosting ultralight vehicle flights, 10 of which have been approved for operating ultralight aerial vehicles, CAA Flight Standards Division director-general Wang Fu-min (王富民) said.
The CAA is collaborating with local governments to police unauthorized viable locations, Wang said.
Chinese Taipei Aerosports Federation Director-General Hsu Wen-chih (許文志) said the federation welcomed the government’s efforts to crack down on those flying in unauthorized areas, but hoped the government would reduce altitude restrictions from 2,000 feet to 3,000 feet .
Flying ultralight aerial devices below 1,000 feet in the US do not require a permit or certification, nor do state governments regulate them, Hsu said.
The federation only has approval to operate flights in Pingtung County’s Baolai Township (寶來) to Sandimen (三地門) region, and that many have complained that the restricted space “felt like a cage,” he added.
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications Ultralight Aerial Vehicle Act (超輕型載具管理辦法), promulgated on March 22, 2004, and amended on Dec 12, 2022, defined ultralight aerial vehicles as fix-winged vehicles, paragliders, gyroplanes, paramotors and trikes.
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