UAS Flight Restrictions Near Fixed Site Facilities (Section 2209)

Current understanding

The FAA has proposed a rule implementing Section 2209 of the FAA Extension, Safety and Security Act of 2016, establishing a process by which operators of fixed site facilities (e.g., critical infrastructure, amusement parks, other sensitive locations) may petition the FAA to designate unmanned aircraft flight restrictions over their sites. Grounds for restriction include aviation safety, ground safety, national security, and homeland security. Status: proposed rule; implementation is nearly a decade after the statutory mandate.

Evidence log

• 2026-07-23 — To direct the Secretary of Defense to establish test and training corridors for small unmanned aircraft systems and associated capabilities, and for other purposes.: cross-connection with dod-small-uas-test-training-corridors: Designated DoD sUAS corridors intersect with airspace management regimes such as Section 2209 fixed-site flight restrictions. (novelty: 2)
• 2026-05-06 — Designation-Restrict the Operation of Unmanned Aircraft in Close Proximity to a Fixed Site Facility: cross-connection with counter-uas-sltt-authority: Both address UAS threats to sensitive facilities: Section 2209 provides a preventive airspace-restriction petition mechanism via FAA, while the SLTT counter-UAS authority provides reactive detection and mitigation capabilities for law enforcement. (novelty: 2)

Open questions

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