Ashwaubenon, WI Drone Rules: Airport Proximity Rules (2026)

Section 9-1-18(C)(5) of the Ashwaubenon Municipal Code, adopted by Ordinance No. O5-1-17 (May 26, 2017) and amended by Ordinance No. O3-5-21 (March 23, 2021), prohibits taking off or landing a UAS, commonly called a drone, within 1,500 horizontal feet of any aircraft, a term the ordinance defines to include another UAS. That distance rule is not absolute: the code states it 'shall be subject to preemption by any waiver granted under 47 CFR Part 107 by the FAA,' so a federally waivered operation controls over the local buffer.

A separate, broader restriction sits at § 9-1-18(C)(6): no person may take off or land a drone contrary to the FAA's restrictions on airspace specifically as it applies to proximity to airports, Temporary Flight Restrictions, or select sporting events. That provision folds federal airspace law directly into Village enforcement, meaning a pilot who violates an FAA airport-proximity rule or a Temporary Flight Restriction is also violating the Village code and can be cited locally rather than only by the FAA. Both restrictions sit within the same section that separately requires drone operators to stay within visual line of sight, obtain landowner consent before landing on private property, and avoid flying near emergency incidents or schools.

Public UAS operated for a government agency, such as the Ashwaubenon Department of Public Safety, are exempt under § 9-1-18(F), and all other operators remain subject to the $500 per-violation fine set out in § 9-1-18(G).