Lee County, FL Drone Rules: Airport Proximity Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Permission needed
- Written approval from Executive Director
- Covers
- Model aircraft, drones, rockets, kites, balloons
- Ultralights
- Need Port Authority OK plus ATC clearance
- Where it applies
- On Lee County airport property
- Adopted
- Ord. No. 94-09, April 20, 1994
- Penalty
- Up to $500 fine or 60 days jail
Summary
Lee County Port Authority rules bar anyone from flying a model aircraft, drone, rocket, kite, balloon or parachute at or on Southwest Florida International, Page Field or the county's other airports without the Executive Director's prior written approval. Sec. 5-86 layers a second permission requirement, plus federal air traffic control clearance, on top of that for powered or unpowered ultralight aircraft.
No person shall operate or release any model aircraft, rocket, kite, balloon, parachute or other similar contrivance at or upon the airports without the prior written approval of the Executive Director. No person may operate a powered or unpowered ultralight aircraft at the airports without prior written permission from the Port Authority in accordance with applicable federal regulations and additional authorization from the air traffic control facility with control authority over operations within all classes of airspace as designated by federal regulation.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 7 | Land Development Code: Supplement 3 Update 3).
Full Breakdown
Sec. 5-86, part of the Airport Rules and Regulations adopted by Ordinance No. 94-09 in 1994, is the Lee County Port Authority's own drone and model-aircraft rule. It bars any person from operating or releasing a model aircraft, rocket, kite, balloon, parachute or similar contrivance at or upon the airports without the Executive Director's prior written approval, a category the Port Authority applies to recreational drones flown on or over its property. A second sentence separately regulates powered or unpowered ultralight aircraft: an operator needs prior written permission from the Port Authority, has to comply with applicable federal regulations, and must get additional authorization from the air traffic control facility that has control authority over whatever class of airspace the flight will use.
The section sits in Chapter 5's Division 3, Personal Conduct, alongside neighboring rules that require the public to obey posted signs (Sec. 5-84) and that bar throwing objects or directing lights in a way that endangers aircraft (Sec. 5-87). The Port Authority governs Southwest Florida International Airport, Page Field and Lee County's smaller general-aviation fields under this same chapter, and the written-approval requirement applies on airport property itself rather than establishing a countywide no-fly buffer; drone operators flying near, but not on, airport grounds remain subject to FAA airspace rules rather than this county section.
Violations & Fines
Chapter 5 does not print a standalone fine table for Sec. 5-86, so an unauthorized drone or model-aircraft launch on airport property is enforced through the Code's general penalty at Sec. 1-7: up to a $500.00 fine, up to 60 days in jail, or both, with authority resting with the Executive Director and airport law enforcement to remove violators from Port Authority property.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I fly a drone near Southwest Florida International Airport?
How do I get permission to fly a drone at a Lee County airport?
Does the same rule apply to ultralight aircraft?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lee County
Florida rules heatmap·Compare Lee County to another location·View the Florida drone rules overview
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