Japan Govt OKs Bill for Wider Drone No-Fly Zones

Tokyo, March 24 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government Tuesday approved a draft revision to the drone law that calls for expanding no-fly zones to within 1 kilometer of important facilities. The expansion is aimed at ensuring sufficient distance for guarding key facilities in response to improvements in drone performance, such as speed. Penalties for illegal drone flights will also be revised. The legislation is expected to take effect 20 days after promulgation if it is enacted during the current parliamentary session ending in July. Under the current law, drone flights are banned in red zones–over the sites of key facilities such as government institutions, the Imperial Palace and nuclear power plants–and in yellow zones, or within 300 meters of such sites. The number of facilities designated for no-fly restrictions, which also include Self-Defense Force bases and airports, totaled 484 as of the end of last year. While the designated no-fly zones have not changed since the law entered into force in 2016, drones’ maximum speeds, ranges and load capacities have improved drastically, making the existing 300-meter buffer insufficient to protect facilities. In the bill, yellow zones will be expanded to within 1 km of key facilities. The distance was set based on opinions from an expert panel, with consideration given to the fact that tens of seconds are needed to deal with intrusions by high-speed drones sold in foreign countries. The draft also calls for a penalty of up to six months in prison or a fine of up to 500,000 yen for violating flight bans in yellow zones. Previously, punishments for flights in yellow zones were imposed when operators failed to abide by police warnings, but the new penalty will immediately apply to all yellow-zone flights, as is the case for red zones. Additionally, the revision would enable the commissioner-general of the National Police Agency to designate venues of events attended by the Emperor, the prime minister and others as important facilities covered by flight bans. It would also allow venues of international conferences attended by foreign dignitaries to be designated as key facilities from the preparation stage to boost security. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]