Flying Drones in East Bay Regional Parks Is Illegal With $300 Fines
The East Bay Regional Park District is off-limits to drones and will cite violators $300 if they fly the unmanned aircraft in any of the district’s 65 parks and 120,000 acres of open space.
Even though the Federal Aviation Administration began requiring drone owners to register with the agency before flying outdoors, drones are illegal in all the East Bay Regional Parks regardless of whether the owner has registered. The National Park Service, as well as dozens of state and local park districts across the country, have also banned drones. Drones are banned in the California State Parks, including Mt. Diablo State Park, except with a film permit.
Park spokeswoman Carolyn Jones said even a small drone could shatter a windshield or smash into a plane or helicopter’s propellers or fuselage, causing the aircraft to crash.
The East Bay has four busy airports – in Oakland, Hayward, Livermore and Concord – as well as several hospitals with helipads, and a drone-related accident could be catastrophic, she said.
