Hendersonville, TN Drone Rules: Recreational Drones (2026)

Drone operations in and around Hendersonville are layered federal-state-local. (1) Federal — the FAA controls U.S. airspace. Commercial operators must hold a Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate (14 CFR Part 107). Recreational flyers operate under the Exception for Limited Recreational Operations (49 U.S.C. § 44809): fly within visual line of sight, below 400 feet AGL, away from other aircraft, register any drone over 0.55 lbs (and under 55 lbs) with the FAA, broadcast Remote ID, and pass the FAA's TRUST safety test. Hendersonville is roughly 18 miles northeast of Nashville International (BNA); portions of the area fall within or under BNA's Class B airspace, where LAANC authorization (or a manual FAA waiver) is required before flight. (2) State — TCA 39-13-609 (Freedom from Unwarranted Surveillance Act, enacted 2014) prohibits a law enforcement agency from using a drone to gather evidence or information without a warrant, except in narrow exceptions (high risk of a terrorist attack, search for a fugitive, missing-person searches, imminent danger to life); data collected outside those exceptions must be destroyed. Aggrieved citizens have civil standing to sue. TCA 39-13-903 (Unlawful capture of image with intent to conduct surveillance) makes it a Class A misdemeanor to knowingly photograph or use a UAS to surveil another person without consent in a manner that would offend a reasonable person, and a Class E felony to knowingly fly a UAS within 250 feet of the perimeter of a critical-infrastructure facility (petroleum refineries, electrical/power generation and transmission facilities, distribution substations, chemical manufacturing, water and wastewater treatment, natural gas / propane infrastructure, communication facilities, railroad yards not open to the public) for the purpose of surveillance, evidence-gathering, or recording without written consent. TCA 70-4-302 makes it a Class C misdemeanor to use a UAS to harass hunters or anglers. (3) Local — Hendersonville does NOT publish a stand-alone drone ordinance regulating airspace (and could not, due to federal preemption). The City's Mobile Vendor Checklist establishes the principle for activities on City property: 'Mobile vendors may operate in City Parks or on City owned property with permission of the City of Hendersonville Parks Director or Mayor.' Drone take-off, landing, and operations on Hendersonville parks or city-owned property accordingly require permission of the Parks Director or Mayor; the City Parks Department is the contact. (4) Always check the FAA B4UFLY app before flying near Hendersonville given proximity to BNA Class B airspace. (5) Operators should obtain landowner permission before launching or recovering from private property. (6) Reckless, harassing, or property-damaging flight can trigger state criminal charges (TCA Title 39) and FAA enforcement.