No more direct drone access in the UAE; All services now through the official portal. world News
The UAE General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has officially stopped providing direct drone services and has announced that all applications and related procedures should now be completed through the country’s new dedicated drone service platform: draones.gov.ae, The website is jointly powered by the UAE Cyber Security Council and GCAA, and it consolidates major functionalities for drone pilots, government agencies and commercial users.
New platform for drone operation
In a public statement, GCAA said: “Drone services are no longer available through GCAA. You can apply for drone services via Drone.gov.Ae.” Applicants now need:
- Register as drone pilots
- Get Real-Time Aircraft Update
- Get immediate mission approval in controlled areas
- Create detailed flight reports
- Plan to operate safe and obedient drone with live status awareness
The platform centrally central the entertaining flight under a streamlined digital system to commercial and government drone use.
New guidelines and cyber security integration
In May 2025, the UAE Cybercity Council announced the country’s first national guidelines for drone operations, inspired by increasing use of drones:
- Agriculture
- environmental monitoring
- Logistics and distribution
Focus on guidelines:
- Aircraft and infrastructure
- Ensure data integrity
- Addressing cyber security dangers
This regulatory change follows a national effort to standardize drone operations and avoid misuse. In 2022, the UAE banned the use of drones following a series of violations. However, on January 7, 2025, the internal ministry partially lifted the ban, which led to the use of drones under strict safety rules and federal and local compliance requirements.
Training, compliance and resources
new stage draones.gov.ae It also provides:
- Direct links for registration based on drone use type: Entertaining, commercial or government
- A comprehensive drone operation manual coverings:
- DOS and don’ts
- Permissible flight area
- Time restriction
- Registration and setup guide
- Mission Plan and Flight Request Process
In addition, it lists three approved training organizations:
- Emirate Falcon Aeroclab – Al Ain
- Melaha Drone – Fujarah
- Versa Aerospace – Abu Dhabi
The purpose of the platform is to support safe and regulated drone activity by increasing the vision of the UAE for technical-powered aircraft management.
