If you're hiring a drone service for a construction project on Utah's Wasatch Front, there's a detail that matters more than most contractors realize: a significant portion of the Wasatch Front corridor sits under controlled airspace from Salt Lake City International Airport, Provo Municipal Airport, Ogden-Hinckley Airport, and several smaller facilities.
Flying a drone in controlled airspace without authorization isn't a technicality. It's a federal violation. The authorization system that makes construction drone operations legal near these airports is called LAANC — and understanding how it works will help you verify that any drone service you hire is operating legally.
What Is LAANC?
LAANC stands for Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability. It's a FAA program that provides near-real-time airspace authorization for drone operators flying in controlled airspace below 400 feet.
Before LAANC existed, getting authorization to fly in controlled airspace required submitting a formal waiver application to the FAA and waiting days or weeks for approval. For construction documentation — where you need to fly on a specific date at a specific site — that timeline was often impractical.
LAANC changed that. Through approved apps (DJI Fly, AirMap, Aloft, ForeFlight, and others), a Part 107-licensed pilot can request airspace authorization for a specific location, altitude, and time window, and receive approval automatically within seconds. The system is integrated directly with FAA air traffic control data and updates in real time based on active flight operations at nearby airports.
Which Utah Construction Sites Are in Controlled Airspace?
The controlled airspace boundaries around Utah airports extend well into the Wasatch Front construction corridor. If your project is anywhere in these areas, LAANC authorization is required before any drone flight:
Salt Lake City International (KSLC) Class B airspace extends across a large portion of Salt Lake County and reaches into parts of Davis and Utah Counties. The outer rings of Class B extend to roughly 20 nautical miles from the airport. Construction projects in West Valley City, Murray, Taylorsville, West Jordan, South Salt Lake, and nearby areas fall within KSLC's Class B or Class C airspace.
Provo Municipal Airport (KPVU) Class D airspace covers a radius around Provo that captures parts of southern Utah County. Projects in Provo, Orem, and surrounding areas require LAANC authorization.
Ogden-Hinckley Airport (KOGD) Class D airspace affects projects in Ogden and surrounding Weber County.
South Valley Regional Airport (U42) in West Jordan has a Class D shelf that affects parts of southwestern Salt Lake County.
Spanish Fork / Springville Airport (U77) has a smaller Class D that affects southern Utah County projects.
Even projects in areas that appear to be in uncontrolled airspace can have altitude restrictions due to temporary flight restrictions, stadiums, prisons, or other special-use airspace. A Part 107 pilot uses airspace planning tools to check every site before every flight.
How LAANC Authorization Works in Practice
For a licensed Part 107 operator like Remington Drones, the LAANC workflow for a construction site in controlled airspace looks like this:
Before each flight, the pilot opens an approved UAS planning app and selects the proposed flight area. The app overlays the controlled airspace boundaries and shows the maximum approved altitude for that specific location. In many areas near SLC, LAANC authorization is available at 0 feet — meaning no flight is approved at any altitude. In other areas, pre-approved altitudes of 100, 200, or 400 feet are available via instant authorization.
If the site falls in a 0-foot authorization zone, the pilot must apply for a Part 107 waiver or work with the FAA to obtain a non-standard authorization. These situations are relatively uncommon for ground-level construction sites but do occur for projects directly in the approach/departure corridors of major airports.
Once authorization is granted, it's tied to a specific time window (typically 4 hours). The authorization is logged in the pilot's records and is verifiable. A professional drone operator should be able to provide you with a copy of the LAANC authorization for any flight on your project.
What LAANC Doesn't Cover
LAANC handles controlled airspace authorization, but it doesn't replace other aspects of legal drone operation:
Part 107 certification — The Remote Pilot Certificate (Part 107) is a separate requirement from LAANC. A drone operator can use LAANC apps without being Part 107 certified, but operating commercially without a Part 107 certificate is illegal. Always verify your drone operator's certificate before hiring.
Altitude above 400 feet — LAANC only covers flights in controlled airspace below 400 feet AGL. Flights above 400 feet require a separate waiver regardless of airspace classification.
Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs) — LAANC doesn't override TFRs, which can be issued on short notice around stadium events, VIP movements, wildfires, and other situations. A professional pilot checks for active TFRs before every flight.
Visual line of sight requirements — Part 107 requires the pilot to maintain visual line of sight with the drone at all times (with limited exceptions). LAANC doesn't change this.
FAA Part 107: What It Means for Your Project
When a drone operator says they're "FAA licensed," they mean they hold a Remote Pilot Certificate under Part 107 of the FAA regulations. Obtaining this certificate requires passing a written knowledge test covering airspace classification, weather, aeronautical decision-making, and drone regulations. It must be renewed every 24 months.
For commercial construction documentation, Part 107 is not optional. Operating a drone commercially without a Part 107 certificate is a federal violation. More practically, a drone operator without Part 107 certification cannot legally use LAANC, cannot fly in controlled airspace, and cannot provide you with insurance documentation tied to licensed commercial operations.
When you hire a drone service, ask to see their Remote Pilot Certificate. It should show the pilot's name and an expiration date. If they can't produce one, don't hire them.
What to Ask When Hiring a Utah Drone Service
If your construction site is on the Wasatch Front, these are the questions worth asking:
- Are you FAA Part 107 certified? Can I see your certificate?
- Have you checked whether our site is in controlled airspace?
- If authorization is required, how do you handle LAANC requests?
- Do you carry commercial drone insurance? What are the limits?
- Can you provide documentation of your airspace authorization for each flight?
A professional, licensed operator will answer all of these without hesitation. These aren't technical gotchas — they're baseline requirements for legal commercial drone operations in Utah.
How Remington Drones Handles Airspace on Every Project
Remington Drones holds a current FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate and checks airspace authorization for every project site before scheduling a flight. For sites in controlled airspace, we obtain LAANC authorization for each flight window and retain the authorization records as part of project documentation. We carry commercial drone liability insurance and can provide certificates of insurance for projects that require them.
If your construction project is in an area where standard LAANC authorization isn't available, we'll let you know upfront and discuss options — rather than scheduling a flight and discovering the problem on the day of.
Contact us to discuss your project site and any airspace considerations before scheduling.