← Back to Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve
Drone Rules for Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve
Alaska (AK)
• United States
Alaska, USA
Lat: 58.6658 • Lng: -136.9
Rules Edit History: Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve
Showing changes between revisions.
Mapped shape change
Old outline is gray. New outline is blue.
May 29, 2026 1:27 AM
Approved
• Added drone restriction profile for Glacier Bay National Park based on NPS Policy Memorandum 14-05, 36 CFR § 1.5, MMPA humpback whale protections, MBTA seabird colonies, Wilderness Act, and ANILCA Alaska provisions.
Moderation feedback
NeedsHumanReview
Confidence: 0.75
Your proposed edit accurately reflects the drone restrictions in Glacier Bay National Park, supported by official sources. However, the outline provided is approximately 16.87 km from the selected location, which may not accurately represent the park's boundaries. Please review and adjust the outline to ensure it accurately matches the park's location.
Sources
- https://www.nps.gov/glba/planyourvisit/unmanned-aircraft.htm — NPS Policy Memorandum 14-05 and 36 CFR § 1.5 prohibit all drone operations. MMPA humpback whale feeding habitat, MBTA seabird colonies, Wilderness Act, and ANILCA add multi-layer federal restrictions.
Changed fields
| Field | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Flight status | Permission | NoFly |
| Summary | United States National Parks are restricted from taking off, landing, or controlling a drone within the park to those with permission. Which is rare to receive. | Drone operations are strictly prohibited at Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve under NPS regulations. No recreational or commercial flights are permitted without an explicit Special Use Permit. UNESCO World Heritage Site and Biosphere Reserve protecting 1,000 tidewater glaciers, critical humpback whale feeding habita |
Before
## This action applies to the launching, landing, and operation of uncrewed aircraft on lands and waters administered by the NPS. Jurisdiction by the NPS ends at the park boundary. The policy memorandum does not modify any requirement imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on the use or operation of uncrewed aircraft in the National Airspace System. https://www.nps.gov/articles/uncrewed-aircraft-in-the-national-parks.htm
After
## Authorization Status - Recreational: ❌ 100% Banned - Commercial (Part 107): ❌ Not allowed without NPS Special Use Permit - UNESCO WHC: ⚠️ Kluane/Wrangell transboundary World Heritage Site - MMPA: ⚠️ Humpback whale critical feeding habitat ## Geographic Boundaries Glacier Bay National Park is located in the Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska. - Total area: ~3,283,000 acres - Coordinates: 58.6658° N, 136.9000° W - Includes Grand Pacific Glacier, Johns Hopkins Inlet, Mount Fairweather (15,325 ft MSL), and Beardslee Islands - Critical humpback whale summer feeding grounds - Nearest city: Gustavus, AK (adjacent to park) ## Regulations - NPS Management Policies § 8.2.2 prohibits UAS in all NPS units - 36 CFR § 1.5 — Superintendent's closure authority - 36 CFR § 2.17(a)(3) — Prohibits air delivery/retrieval - Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. § 1131) — Glacier Bay Wilderness - ANILCA (16 U.S.C. § 3101) — Alaska subsistence provisions - Marine Mammal Protection Act (16 U.S.C. § 1361) — humpback whale feeding habitat; UAS harassment prohibited - MBTA (16 U.S.C. § 703) — seabird colonies - FAA 14 CFR Part 107 governs commercial operations - Airspace: Class G; no controlled airspace over park ## Penalties - NPS fines up to $5,000 per violation - MMPA: civil fines up to $10,000 per marine mammal incident - MBTA: fines up to $15,000 + 6 months per bird disturbance - FAA civil penalties up to $27,500 per violation per day - Equipment confiscation by park rangers ## Special Permissions - NPS Special Use Permit required - MMPA Letter of Authorization for whale research - Glaciological research: NPS + USGS coordination Submit requests to: Glacier Bay NP Superintendent, 1 Park Road, Gustavus, AK 99826
Show inline change markers
+ - Commercial (Part 107): ❌ Not allowed without NPS Special Use Permit + - UNESCO WHC: ⚠️ Kluane/Wrangell transboundary World Heritage Site + - MMPA: ⚠️ Humpback whale critical feeding habitat + + ## Geographic Boundaries + Glacier Bay National Park is located in the Hoonah-Angoon + Census Area, Alaska. + - Total area: ~3,283,000 acres + - Coordinates: 58.6658° N, 136.9000° W + - Includes Grand Pacific Glacier, Johns Hopkins Inlet, + Mount Fairweather (15,325 ft MSL), and Beardslee Islands + - Critical humpback whale summer feeding grounds + - Nearest city: Gustavus, AK (adjacent to park) + + ## Regulations + - NPS Management Policies § 8.2.2 prohibits UAS in all NPS units + - 36 CFR § 1.5 — Superintendent's closure authority + - 36 CFR § 2.17(a)(3) — Prohibits air delivery/retrieval + - Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. § 1131) — Glacier Bay Wilderness + - ANILCA (16 U.S.C. § 3101) — Alaska subsistence provisions + - Marine Mammal Protection Act (16 U.S.C. § 1361) — humpback + whale feeding habitat; UAS harassment prohibited + - MBTA (16 U.S.C. § 703) — seabird colonies + - FAA 14 CFR Part 107 governs commercial operations + - Airspace: Class G; no controlled airspace over park + + ## Penalties + - NPS fines up to $5,000 per violation + - MMPA: civil fines up to $10,000 per marine mammal incident + - MBTA: fines up to $15,000 + 6 months per bird disturbance + - FAA civil penalties up to $27,500 per violation per day + - Equipment confiscation by park rangers + - NPS Special Use Permit required + - MMPA Letter of Authorization for whale research + - Glaciological research: NPS + USGS coordination + Submit requests to: Glacier Bay NP Superintendent, + 1 Park Road, Gustavus, AK 99826
May 27, 2026 10:17 AM
Approved
• Rollback user history: Bad outlines
Moderation feedback
Administrative rollback audit entry.
Changed fields
Mapped shape change
Click to load this change into the shared map viewer here.
| Field | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Flight status | NoFly | Permission |
| Summary | Drones are prohibited in Glacier Bay National Park per NPS closure order. Humpback whales and tidewater glaciers are protected. | United States National Parks are restricted from taking off, landing, or controlling a drone within the park to those with permission. Which is rare to receive. |
| Mapped shapes | 5ffbc22f-37cd-475e-8651-10e0c8145f28 | 4009388a-ff1a-4a85-aaf6-24b6898da738 |
Before
## Drone Rules - Glacier Bay National Park **Drone flights are banned** in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. ### Key Rules - No recreational drone use within the park - Commercial use requires a Special Use Permit - Humpback whale feeding grounds, harbor seal pupping beaches, and calving glaciers are extremely sensitive to disturbance ### Source - Glacier Bay NPS Rules: https://www.nps.gov/glba/planyourvisit/rules.htm
After
## This action applies to the launching, landing, and operation of uncrewed aircraft on lands and waters administered by the NPS. Jurisdiction by the NPS ends at the park boundary. The policy memorandum does not modify any requirement imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on the use or operation of uncrewed aircraft in the National Airspace System. https://www.nps.gov/articles/uncrewed-aircraft-in-the-national-parks.htm
Show inline change markers
+ This action applies to the launching, landing, and operation of uncrewed aircraft on lands and waters administered by the NPS. Jurisdiction by the NPS ends at the park boundary. The policy memorandum does not modify any requirement imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on the use or operation of uncrewed aircraft in the National Airspace System. - - ### Key Rules - - No recreational drone use within the park - - Commercial use requires a Special Use Permit - - Humpback whale feeding grounds, harbor seal pupping beaches, and calving glaciers are extremely sensitive to disturbance - - ### Source - - Glacier Bay NPS Rules: https://www.nps.gov/glba/planyourvisit/rules.htm -
Changed fields
Mapped shape change
Click to load this change into the shared map viewer here.
| Field | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Rule category | — | Ground |
| Flight status | — | Permission |
| Summary | — | United States National Parks are restricted from taking off, landing, or controlling a drone within the park to those with permission. Which is rare to receive. |
| Mapped shapes | — | 4009388a-ff1a-4a85-aaf6-24b6898da738 |
Before
After
## This action applies to the launching, landing, and operation of uncrewed aircraft on lands and waters administered by the NPS. Jurisdiction by the NPS ends at the park boundary. The policy memorandum does not modify any requirement imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on the use or operation of uncrewed aircraft in the National Airspace System. https://www.nps.gov/articles/uncrewed-aircraft-in-the-national-parks.htm
Show inline change markers
+ ## + This action applies to the launching, landing, and operation of uncrewed aircraft on lands and waters administered by the NPS. Jurisdiction by the NPS ends at the park boundary. The policy memorandum does not modify any requirement imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on the use or operation of uncrewed aircraft in the National Airspace System. + + https://www.nps.gov/articles/uncrewed-aircraft-in-the-national-parks.htm