Pitt County, NC Drone Rules: Recreational Drones (2026)

§ 153A-121, regulates takeoff and landing rather than mid-air flight paths, and Section 3 makes it applicable to the unincorporated areas of the county plus any municipality that adopts it by resolution. Section 5 sets six site-based rules: a drone cannot take off or land on private property without the owner's consent (5A); cannot carry any weapon (5B); cannot take off or land within 500 feet of an emergency vehicle operating with lights or sirens (5C); cannot take off or land within 500 feet of an active law-enforcement or emergency-response incident (5D); cannot take off or land within 100 feet of a school facility without prior notice to and authorization from school officials (5E); and cannot take off or land within 500 feet of the Pitt County Detention Center or other Sheriff's Office facilities (5F).

55 pounds, pulling the smallest toy drones outside the ordinance entirely. A heavier recreational drone that stays off the listed buffers and off private property without consent needs no county permit; the ordinance imposes no registration or licensing scheme of its own, leaving FAA recreational-flyer rules to cover the rest.