← Back to Dry Tortugas National Park

Drone Rules for Dry Tortugas National Park

Key West, Florida (FL) • United States
Florida, USA
Lat: 24.6285 • Lng: -82.8732
Ground Not allowed Last updated: May 30, 2026
Summary
Edit rules/place details on map

Dry Tortugas National Park prohibits all drone operations under NPS 36 CFR 1.5. The remote islands 70 miles west of Key West protect Fort Jefferson and the largest Magnificent Frigatebird and Sooty Tern nesting colonies in North America.

Drone Rules - Dry Tortugas NP

All drone operations are prohibited under NPS 36 CFR 1.5. The Sooty Tern colony (80,000+ nesting pairs) is the largest seabird colony in the continental US; drone disturbance would cause catastrophic nest abandonment.

Airspace / Site Context

  • Key West International (KEYW) Class C lies ~70 miles east
  • Park accessible only by seaplane or ferry; Bush Key has the seabird colonies
  • Florida Straits and Gulf of Mexico shipping lanes surround the islands
  • ADIZ (Air Defense Identification Zone) extends through this region of the Florida Straits

Key Rules

  • No drone operations on any of the park's islands or in park waters
  • Sooty Tern and Brown Noddy colonies on Bush Key closed to all access April-September
  • Magnificent Frigatebird (first US nesting record in 1988) is MBTA protected
  • Loggerhead sea turtle (ESA threatened) nests on beaches throughout the park

Source

Map is not loaded yet
Load the map only when you need to view the rule outline.
This shows the latest mapped outline for this rules page. Click a shape to view its note when available.
Rule sources
Parent Rule Pages