China Civil Aviation Administration Establishes "Low-Altitude Safety Department" to Regulate Drones

(Central News Agency, Taipei, 13th) Under the policy of strengthened drone regulation by Chinese authorities, including a no-fly zone for drones in the capital Beijing, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) recently officially established the "Low-Altitude Safety Department." This department will be responsible for low-altitude civil aviation development planning, coordinating low-altitude safety and development, building low-altitude flight service dispatch platforms, and a low-altitude flight service station system, among other tasks.

Today, The Paper reported that the "Low-Altitude Safety Department" on the CAAC's official website has been formally set up, stating that the aforementioned tasks are the department's "institutional responsibilities."

The report mentioned that former CAAC Director Li Jiaxiang stated on the 9th, during his attendance at the "2026 Low-Altitude Industry Collaboration and Ecosystem Partner Development Forum," that the Central Institutional Organization Commission Office had officially approved the CAAC to establish the "Low-Altitude Economy Department," which the CAAC intends to name the "Low-Altitude Safety Department."

In July 2025, the CAAC announced that, to implement central policy decisions and strengthen the organizational leadership and coordinated planning of general aviation, unmanned aerial vehicles, and the low-altitude economy, the CAAC optimized and adjusted its "General Aviation Working Group," "Civil Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Management Working Group," and "Promoting Low-Altitude Economy Development Working Group," establishing the "General Aviation and Low-Altitude Economy Working Group."

The CAAC stated at the time that the director and deputy director of this working group would be concurrently held by the CAAC's director and deputy director, and its members would include heads of relevant business departments. The working group's main tasks include implementing central policy decisions, researching and determining key work arrangements for promoting the development of general aviation and the low-altitude economy, and coordinating solutions for inter-departmental and inter-central-local issues. Simultaneously, a "Working Group Office" was established, with six special working groups, and relevant working mechanisms were put in place.

The CAAC stated that after the establishment of the "Low-Altitude Safety Department," it will focus on compiling development plans, airworthiness certification, market regulation, flight operation regulation, flight service assurance, construction of flight service dispatch platforms, and construction of safety regulation systems to promote the safe and orderly development of general aviation and the low-altitude economy. (Editors: Qiu Guoqiang / Yang Shengru) 1150513