Before you fly
This summary is for readability only. The numbered terms below are the binding ones.
- How to fly safely here is set out in the Indoor Flight Safety Rules. Read them before you come. They are part of this Annex.
- You attend the safety briefing and answer a short comprehension check.
- Your drone must meet section B4: under 1 kg, propeller guards, sound condition. DDI can refuse a drone it considers unsafe.
- Your video transmitter must stay within the legal power limits in section B5.
- Personal liability insurance is not required, but it is strongly recommended. Check with your insurer whether drone flying is covered. Without it, any damage you cause is at your own expense.
B1. Scope
B1.1 This Annex applies to all flying at the DDI Facility, whether during a Fly4Fun session or as part of a Course or Workshop, and forms part of the Agreement together with the General Terms and Conditions.
B1.2 Where a Course or Workshop includes flying, this Annex applies in addition to Annex A. Registration for such a Course or Workshop requires acceptance of both Annexes.
B1.3 Where this Annex conflicts with the General Terms, this Annex prevails for flying activities.
B1.4 Defined terms have the meaning given in section 2 of the General Terms.
B1.5 All flying covered by this Annex takes place indoors. DDI does not operate the Participant’s drone and does not act as its operator.
B2. Participation, age and briefing
B2.1 The minimum age is 12 years. Where the Participant is under 18, the parent or legal guardian registers in accordance with section 10 of the General Terms.
B2.2 The Indoor Flight Safety Rules, published on the DDI website and supplied with the confirmation, form part of this Annex. They set out how flying is carried out safely at the Facility, including use of the flight zone, the spectator barrier, the pre-flight checklist, and what to do when something goes wrong.
B2.3 The Participant reads the Indoor Flight Safety Rules before attending, attends the in-person safety briefing, and completes the short comprehension check. A Participant who has not done so may not fly.
B2.4 The supervisor may require a briefing to be repeated, for example after a change to the Facility or to the rules.
B2.5 Where the Indoor Flight Safety Rules and this Annex differ on how flying is carried out safely, the Safety Rules prevail. This Annex governs who may fly, what may be flown, and the consequences of not complying.
B3. Supervision and the flight area
B3.1 A DDI supervisor or instructor is present throughout. The supervisor opens and closes the flight area and may suspend flying at any time.
B3.2 The supervisor’s instructions are followed immediately and override anything in this Annex or the Safety Rules on how a session is run.
B3.3 The supervisor decides who flies, when, and how many drones may be airborne at the same time.
B3.4 DDI provides a prepared flight zone, a barrier separating the flight area from the spectator area, a designated pilot position, and a supervisor present for the whole session.
B3.5 A stocked first-aid kit, fire extinguishing equipment suitable for lithium battery fires, and a person trained in first aid are present at the Facility during flying activities.
B4. Drones permitted
B4.1 The maximum take-off mass permitted at the Facility is 1 kg (1,000 grams), measured as the drone is flown, including the battery and everything fitted to it.
B4.2 Propeller guards are fitted to every drone flown at the Facility, unless the supervisor permits otherwise for a specific drone.
B4.3 Where a drone is flown without propeller guards, the supervisor decides what additional safety measures apply, which may include a larger separation distance, restricting who may be present in the flight zone, or refusing the flight. Those measures are followed in full.
B4.4 A drone is not flown where it has a cracked frame, a damaged propeller, loose motor mountings, damaged wiring or a damaged battery.
B4.5 The supervisor may refuse to allow a drone to fly where its build, configuration or condition gives cause for concern. That refusal is a safety decision and does not give rise to any right to a refund.
B5. Radio equipment
B5.1 Control links and video transmitters use radio spectrum. Dutch rules on licence-exempt frequency use apply at the Facility, and flying indoors does not exempt radio equipment from them.
B5.2 In practice this means a video transmitter on the 5.8 GHz band does not exceed 25 mW, and a video transmitter on the 2.4 GHz band does not exceed 10 mW. Higher transmit power, and bands allocated to other users such as 1.2 GHz, require a licence from the Rijksinspectie Digitale Infrastructuur. Many transmitters sold online can be set well above these limits.
B5.3 The Participant is responsible for the compliance of their own radio equipment and for the power it is set to. The supervisor may ask what a video transmitter is set to and may refuse a drone whose equipment does not meet section B5.2.
B6. Batteries
B6.1 Charging is done only at the station designated by DDI, under the supervision of DDI staff, and never unattended. Handling, inspection and disposal of batteries are covered by the Indoor Flight Safety Rules.
B6.2 DDI may refuse to allow a battery to be used or charged at the Facility.
B6.3 DDI accepts discarded batteries and rechargeable batteries from end users free of charge, whether or not they came from DDI. Batteries are handed to a member of DDI staff and are not placed in general waste.
B7. Fly4Fun sessions
B7.1 A Fly4Fun session is a community activity at which Participants fly at the Facility under supervision. Participation requires registration in advance, and places may be limited.
B7.2 Participants may fly their own drone, subject to section B4, or use a DDI training drone where one is available.
B7.3 A Participant using a DDI training drone handles it with due care and reports any damage. Section 13 of the General Terms applies to damage caused by the Participant.
B7.4 Where a Participant attends at no charge under a subscription, section 7.10 of the General Terms applies to non-attendance.
B8. Flying during Courses and Workshops
B8.1 Flying forms part of a Course or Workshop only where the Activity description says so.
B8.2 Initial flight practice is normally carried out with DDI training drones. Participants then fly the drone they have built during the Course, once an instructor has approved it.
B8.3 An instructor decides when a Participant is ready to progress from a training drone to their own drone, and may decline to approve a drone for flight. Section B4.4 applies to that decision.
B9. Indoor flying and drone regulations
B9.1 EU drone regulations, including operator registration, remote pilot certificates and Remote ID, do not apply to indoor flying. No certificate or registration is required to fly at the Facility.
B9.2 Section B9.1 does not reduce the Participant’s responsibility. The rules in this Annex, the duty of care owed to other people at the Facility, and liability for damage caused all apply in full.
B9.3 Nothing in this Annex authorises flying outdoors. A Participant who flies outdoors is responsible for complying with the applicable drone regulations themselves.
B10. Insurance
B10.1 Personal liability insurance (aansprakelijkheidsverzekering particulieren) is not legally required in order to fly at the Facility, but DDI strongly recommends that every Participant holds it.
B10.2 The Participant is advised to check with their insurer whether drone flying is covered by their policy. Cover varies between insurers and some policies exclude it.
B10.3 Because the drones flown at the Facility are light and all flying is indoors, no Dutch or EU drone regulations restrict this activity, and insurers do not normally treat it as an excluded aviation risk. This is general information and not a statement about any individual policy.
B10.4 A Participant who does not hold such insurance bears the cost of any damage they cause themselves. DDI does not verify insurance cover and does not insure the Participant’s drone or personal liability.
B11. Incidents, damage and liability
B11.1 The Participant reports every crash, injury, damaged battery, damage to property and near miss to the supervisor immediately. DDI records incidents internally.
B11.2 Liability for damage caused by the Participant, including damage to the Facility, to DDI property and to other Participants’ property, is governed by section 13 of the General Terms.
B11.3 DDI’s liability is governed by section 12 of the General Terms. DDI is not liable for damage to the Participant’s own drone or equipment.
B12. Photography and video
B12.1 Photography and video, and consent for publication, are governed by section 16 of the General Terms. Preferences are given at registration and can be changed at any time in the Participant’s account.
B12.2 Where a Participant records their own flight footage, they do not publish recognisable images of other Participants without their permission.
B13. Non-compliance
B13.1 Where a Participant does not comply with the rules in this Annex or the Indoor Flight Safety Rules, the supervisor may require them to stop flying, may exclude them from the remainder of the activity, or may remove them from the Facility.
B13.2 Section 11 of the General Terms governs exclusion and its consequences.
Stichting Delft Drone Initiative — Delft, the Netherlands
To be read together with the DDI General Terms and Conditions, and with Annex A for Courses and Workshops.