Commercial drone work in Salt Lake County (real estate photography, construction progress mapping, inspections, surveying, ski-resort marketing) requires the FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate plus FAA registration of every aircraft over 0.55 lb. Because the Salt Lake Valley is blanketed by KSLC Class B airspace (and Hill AFB Class D restrictions to the north), nearly every commercial mission requires LAANC authorization or a Part 107 Waiver. Utah preempts city/county commercial drone ordinances under Utah Code §72-14-103, but operators are subject to Utah's drone trespass (§76-6-206), voyeurism (§76-9-702.7), wildfire (§65A-3-2.5), and correctional-facility (§76-10-2402) statutes. Drones used in critical infrastructure inspections, public safety, or first-responder support may apply for FAA Part 107.39 waivers (flight over people) and Part 107 BVLOS waivers.
Federal Part 107 requirements: (1) Remote Pilot Certificate (pass the 60-question aeronautical knowledge exam at an FAA testing center — Salt Lake City has multiple, including the SLC FSDO area), recurrent online training every 24 months; (2) drone registration at FAADroneZone ($5/3yrs each); (3) Remote ID broadcast required as of March 16, 2024; (4) max altitude 400 ft AGL or within 400 ft of a structure; (5) daylight operation or civil twilight with anti-collision lights; (6) visual line of sight (BVLOS requires §107.31 waiver); (7) no flight over people unless drone is Category 1/2/3/4 (§107.39); (8) Class B/C/D airspace requires LAANC or ATC authorization. Salt Lake-specific: the KSLC Class B floor is the surface across most of the valley, so a real-estate photographer in Sugar House, downtown SLC, or Murray must file a LAANC request for each flight via Aloft, AirMap, or Skyward. LAANC ceilings vary by grid square — many are 100 ft, some 0 ft (no flight). For Park City and the Cottonwood canyons (outside Class B), pilots still need to check for TFRs and ski resort/private land rules. Insurance: while not legally required, most clients (general contractors, real estate brokerages, ski resorts) demand $1M aviation liability — common providers include Verifly/SkyWatch and Global Aerospace. State law: §72-14-103 preempts cities/counties from regulating commercial UAS operations directly, but a pilot still must obey trespass (don't fly over a private home in Holladay without permission), voyeurism (no peeping windows in Cottonwood Heights), and correctional-facility (no flights over Salt Lake County Adult Detention Center on 3300 South) statutes.
FAA Part 107 violations: civil penalties up to $32,666 per violation; certificate suspension or revocation; criminal referral for reckless operation. Common Salt Lake-area infractions: flying in KSLC Class B without LAANC, flying above the LAANC-authorized ceiling, flying BVLOS without waiver, missing Remote ID broadcast. State law: criminal trespass with drone — Class B misdemeanor ($1,000 + 6 months); voyeurism with drone — Class A misdemeanor ($2,500 + 1 year); drone over correctional facility — Class A misdemeanor; weaponized drone — Class B misdemeanor minimum. Wildfire TFR violation: Class B misdemeanor to second-degree felony. Civil exposure: a drone crash that injures a person or damages property in Salt Lake County is litigated in Third District Court — without insurance, the pilot is personally liable.
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