Can you fly inside the DFW Class B shelf?

Yes, in most grids. LAANC returns an automatic authorization up to the ceiling published for that grid, which is usually well above normal mapping altitude. Grids reading zero need an FAA authorization, which takes longer and has to be planned for.

How long does authorization take?

LAANC is typically minutes — it is an automated check against the grid ceiling. A zero-ceiling grid is a different process: an airspace authorization filed through FAA DroneZone, which the FAA asks you to submit at least 60 days ahead. That is the entire reason the site address matters at bid time rather than at flight time.

Do I need to do anything for airspace?

No. Authorization is our responsibility and is included in the quote. What helps is giving us the site address early — it's the one thing that can add weeks to a schedule.

What about flying over an active jobsite?

It's routine, and it's a scheduling question more than a regulatory one. We coordinate the window with the superintendent so the flight happens when the crew isn't underneath it.

Reference document

Airspace authorization around DFW

Most of the Dallas metro sits under controlled airspace, so most construction sites here need authorization before anything flies. This is how that works, what it costs you in schedule, and where it gets hard.

§1 Airspace classes §2 Grid ceilings §3 Waivers §4 What it costs you

This page describes how the system works, not what any particular grid reads today. The FAA revises UAS Facility Map ceilings on its own cycle, so a specific altitude published here would eventually be wrong — and a contractor scheduling against a stale number is exactly what this page exists to prevent. Send us the site address and you get the current ceiling for it, checked the day we quote.

§1

Airspace classes in the service area

Airspace classes, where they apply, ceilings and authorization path
Class	Where	Typical ceiling	Authorization path	Time
Class B	DFW International · Dallas Love Field	0–400 ft AGL, by grid	LAANC, or an FAA DroneZone authorization where the grid reads 0	Minutes — or plan 60 days on a zero grid
Class D	Addison · Denton · McKinney · Arlington · Grand Prairie · Meacham · Alliance · Spinks · Tyler Pounds · North Texas Regional	Varies by grid, commonly 100–400 ft AGL	LAANC	Minutes
Class E surface	Non-towered fields with instrument approaches to the surface	Varies by grid	LAANC where the field is mapped	Minutes
Class G	Most of the rural service area — including Rockwall, which is non-towered	400 ft AGL (Part 107 limit)	No authorization required	None

Class G covers most of the rural half of the service area. Class B is the one that actually affects scheduling.

§2

How grid ceilings work

The FAA publishes a UAS Facility Map that divides controlled airspace into one-mile grids, each with a maximum altitude that LAANC will approve automatically. Two sites a mile apart can have very different ceilings, which is why “can you fly here” is answered by the grid, not by the airport.

A grid reading zero does not mean flight is impossible. It means automatic approval isn’t available and a further FAA authorization is required — which is a schedule problem, not a technical one.

Example grid ceilings and what each means in practice
Grid	Published ceiling	What it means for your site
Zero grid	0 ft	No LAANC. Needs an FAA DroneZone authorization, and Part 107 pilots only.
Runway corridor	50–100 ft	Auto-approved, but usually too low to map from. We fly it or tell you we can't.
Inner shelf	200 ft	Auto-approved and above normal mapping altitude for most sites.
Outer shelf	300–400 ft	Auto-approved. No practical constraint on the flight plan.
Uncontrolled	400 ft	Part 107 ceiling applies; no authorization needed at all.

§3

When a waiver is actually needed

Part 107 rules that may require a waiver and when they apply
Rule	When it comes up	Path	In practice
§107.51(b) — 400 ft AGL	Tall structures or terrain requiring higher flight	Waiver	Rarely needed for mapping
§107.29 — night operations	Flights after civil twilight	Now permitted with lighting	No waiver since the 2021 rule
§107.31 — visual line of sight	Long corridors beyond VLOS	Waiver	Corridor work is flown in segments instead
§107.39 — over people	Active sites with crews below	Category rules or waiver	Usually solved by scheduling, not paperwork

Most mapping work needs no waiver at all. Corridors and sites with tall structures are the exceptions worth flagging early.

§4

What airspace costs you in schedule

LAANC grid, non-zero ceiling

Minutes. No effect on the schedule at all — this covers most sites.

Zero-ceiling grid

FAA asks for 60 days on a DroneZone authorization. This is the one case where the site address has to reach us at bid time, not flight time.

Uncontrolled airspace

Nothing to file. The schedule is driven entirely by weather.

Airspace questions

§ FAQ

Can you fly inside the DFW Class B shelf?: Yes, in most grids. LAANC returns an automatic authorization up to the ceiling published for that grid, which is usually well above normal mapping altitude. Grids reading zero need an FAA authorization, which takes longer and has to be planned for.
How long does authorization take?: LAANC is typically minutes — it is an automated check against the grid ceiling. A zero-ceiling grid is a different process: an airspace authorization filed through FAA DroneZone, which the FAA asks you to submit at least 60 days ahead. That is the entire reason the site address matters at bid time rather than at flight time.
Do I need to do anything for airspace?: No. Authorization is our responsibility and is included in the quote. What helps is giving us the site address early — it's the one thing that can add weeks to a schedule.
What about flying over an active jobsite?: It's routine, and it's a scheduling question more than a regulatory one. We coordinate the window with the superintendent so the flight happens when the crew isn't underneath it.

Send the site address early.

It's the one thing that can add weeks — everything else is measured in hours.

Request a bid