Flying drones in Île-de-France: zones, paperwork and contacts

Who it is for

• Companies, agencies and production houses commissioning a drone job in Paris or the Île-de-France region
• Foreign and French professional pilots taking assignments in Paris, the inner suburbs or the outer ring
• Property managers and local authorities planning inspections or site monitoring around Paris

What this guide does not do: This guide grants no authorisation and does not replace checking Géoportail and the French AIS on the day of the flight · It does not repeat the general rules (categories, pilot training) in detail: those are in the complete 2026 guide

Contents of the complete guide

1. What changes when you fly in Île-de-France (free extract below)
2. Airports, airfields and military bases: the airspace map
3. Prohibited, restricted and sensitive sites
4. Natural areas, forests and heritage
5. Paris, inner suburbs, outer ring: town by town
6. Préfectures: where and how to notify
7. Recurring events and the regional calendar
8. Three concrete cases in Île-de-France, from request to flight
9. Regional checklist and official sources

Included: 12 checklist items and 4 decision or reference tables.

Introduction

This regional edition gathers everything specific to the Île-de-France region (Paris and its seven surrounding départements) when you want to fly a drone or commission a drone job: the Paris no-fly zone, the control zones of the three main airports, military and sensitive sites, protected areas, the eight préfectures and how to notify them, and the major events that close the sky. It is written first for business clients (companies, property managers, local authorities, producers) and the pilots who work for them, including teams coming from abroad.

How to read it: chapter 1 for the regional logic, then the chapter matching your situation (Paris, inner suburbs, outer ring), then the checklist in the last chapter before every job. The general framework (open category, STS-01 and STS-02, the French decree of 23 December 2025) is assumed; it is only restated where Île-de-France applies it differently.

Up to date as of 30 September 2026. Zone boundaries change (new decrees, AIP supplements, temporary zones): the official Géoportail drone restriction map and the publications of the French aeronautical information service (SIA) on the day of the flight always prevail.

What changes when you fly in Île-de-France

Île-de-France is the most constrained region in France for drones. Here are the seven specifics that change how a job is prepared compared with the rest of the country.

1. Central Paris is a prohibited zone, not just a built-up area

The twenty arrondissements form the prohibited zone LF-P23 Paris, re-established by a decree of 2 April 2025. The Bois de Boulogne and Bois de Vincennes lie outside P23 but inside the City of Paris. Inside P23 you do not "notify" a flight: you apply for a derogation from the Paris police préfecture (Préfecture de police). Outside P23 (the two woods), you file a prior notification, also with the Préfecture de police. The decree of 23 December 2025, which opened the professional open category over public space in built-up areas, does not lift the P23 ban.

2. Three major airports cover most of the region

The control zones (CTRs) of Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Paris-Orly and Paris-Le Bourget cover much of the inner suburbs and a large share of the outer ring. On Géoportail, maximum heights there often drop to a few tens of metres, sometimes to zero. A job under a CTR needs an agreement with the air navigation service, as explained in our guide to drone missions inside an airport CTR.

3. A unique density of secondary airfields and helicopters

Villacoublay (military air base), Toussus-le-Noble, Saint-Cyr-l'École, Chavenay, Pontoise-Cormeilles, Persan-Beaumont, Lognes-Émerainville, Melun-Villaroche, Étampes-Mondésir, the Paris-Issy-les-Moulineaux heliport and hospital helipads: even outside the three CTRs, few towns escape an aviation constraint.

4. The competent préfecture is not always the obvious one

For Paris, it is the Préfecture de police. For Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis and Val-de-Marne, each département's préfecture publishes its own drone procedure (dedicated e-mail address or online form). For the outer ring, it is the préfectures in Melun, Versailles, Évry-Courcouronnes and Cergy. Chapter 6 gives the method.

5. Sensitive sites are everywhere

Ministries, national palaces, embassies, military sites (Mont Valérien, Villacoublay), prisons (La Santé, Fresnes, Fleury-Mérogis, Poissy, Bois-d'Arcy, Villepinte, Osny, Réau, Meaux, Nanterre), nuclear research centres (CEA Paris-Saclay, CEA Fontenay-aux-Roses). Some are published prohibited zones, others fall under site security: you do not fly over them.

6. Major events close the sky

The 14 July military parade, matches at the Stade de France and the Parc des Princes, Roland-Garros, the Paris Marathon, the Tour de France finish, state visits, the Paris Air Show at Le Bourget (odd-numbered years): temporary prohibited or restricted zones are published, sometimes late. Every date in the region must be checked at D-7 and D-1.

7. Lead time is the real cost

Ten working days minimum for a prior notification, three to six weeks in practice for a P23 derogation, more under a CTR or during events. In Île-de-France, the zone survey and the calendar drive the quote, not the flight time.

Frequently asked questions

How do I receive the guide?

Right after payment you are redirected to the complete guide's page. Bookmark it, or print it to PDF (Ctrl+P or Cmd+P, “Save as PDF”). Stripe also emails you the receipt.

Do I get an invoice?

Yes: Stripe generates the invoice and emails it. You can enter your company name and VAT number at checkout.

Is the guide kept up to date?

Yes. The guide's page is updated when the rules change; your access stays valid and you always read the latest version.

Does this guide replace the official texts or a training course?

No. C-DRONE is neither the French civil aviation authority (DGAC) nor a training organisation: the guide explains and organises the paperwork, with links to the official sources, which alone are authoritative.

Other guides

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Free articles on the topic

• Drone Services in Île-de-France: the P23 No-Fly Zone, Grand Paris Express and La Défense Towers
• Flying a drone in or near Paris in 2026: legal zones, authorisations, prices

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