UAS Facility Maps are FAA-published grid maps that show the maximum altitude, in feet above ground level, at which the agency will pre-approve drone flights in controlled airspace around airports.1Federal Aviation Administration. UAS Facility Maps If you plan to fly near an airport, the map tells you how high you can request through the automated authorization system and whether your location needs a manual review instead. Read the grid, then use a LAANC app to request the altitude you need.
How to Read the Grid
Every map is a grid of squares laid over controlled airspace near an airport. In the lower 48 states, each square measures 30 seconds of latitude by 30 seconds of longitude, roughly a quarter of a square mile, or about 160 acres. Alaska grid sizes vary slightly because of how longitude lines converge.2Federal Aviation Administration. Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Facility Maps
The number inside each square is the highest altitude AGL that the FAA will typically authorize there without additional coordination. Values step in 50-foot increments from zero up to a ceiling of 400 feet.3Federal Aviation Administration. FAA Order JO 7200.23 – Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) A square marked “200” means you can request up to 200 feet and expect near-instant approval. A square marked “0” means nothing has been pre-approved there, so no altitude will clear through the automated process. Zero-grid squares tend to sit in the most sensitive airspace, often directly over runways or along final approach corridors.
The maps also draw the boundaries of Class B, C, D, and surface Class E airspace using the same conventions as VFR sectional charts. The airspace class around the airport affects how the authorization gets handled, so those rings matter as much as the altitude numbers inside them.
Where to Find the Map for Your Location
The FAA publishes the map data through its UAS Data Delivery System, which includes an interactive “Visualize It” map built on ArcGIS.4Federal Aviation Administration. FAA UAS Data Delivery System You can search by address or airport identifier, zoom to any covered airport, and click a grid square to see its altitude ceiling and airspace class.
The same underlying data flows into the apps offered by FAA-approved UAS Service Suppliers, the companies authorized to process LAANC requests.5Federal Aviation Administration. Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability (LAANC) Most pilots read the grid inside one of those apps because the map view and the authorization request live in a single workflow.
Turning the Map Reading Into a LAANC Authorization
Once you know the ceiling for the square you want to fly in, open a LAANC app from an approved supplier, pick the square, enter an altitude at or below the posted number, and submit. If the request stays within the pre-approved limit, authorization comes back in near real time.5Federal Aviation Administration. Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability (LAANC) That speed is the entire point of the facility maps. FAA air traffic facilities have already evaluated each square and set an altitude they are comfortable pre-approving, so the automated system can match a request against those limits without a human touching it.
Both Part 107 pilots and recreational flyers need FAA authorization before flying in controlled airspace around airports, and both use LAANC (or the DroneZone portal) to get it.6Federal Aviation Administration. Recreational Flyers and Community-Based Organizations Facility maps themselves cover altitudes only up to 400 feet AGL; any request above that goes through FAA headquarters rather than the standard LAANC process, regardless of the reason for the higher altitude.3Federal Aviation Administration. FAA Order JO 7200.23 – Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS)
When Your Square Says Zero or You Need More Altitude
If your planned flight sits in a zero-grid square, or you need to fly above the posted number but still at or below 400 feet, the automated path is closed. You submit a “further coordination request” through LAANC or apply directly through the FAA DroneZone portal.5Federal Aviation Administration. Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability (LAANC) That kicks the request to air traffic control for manual review.
The application asks for the purpose of the flight, the proposed altitude, and the safety measures you will use. In a zero-grid square you are proposing an altitude where none has been pre-approved, so keeping the requested height as low as your mission allows helps. Asking for close to 400 feet in a zero-grid square is a quick way to a denial, because those areas exist precisely because the airspace is too congested or sensitive for higher drone operations.
The FAA has said it aims to process further coordination requests within 30 days, though actual timelines vary with airspace complexity and workload at the relevant facility. Only Part 107 pilots can request authorization in zero-grid airspace through the DroneZone airspace authorization portal; recreational pilots do not have access to that function.
Check the Map Version and TFRs Before Every Flight
Facility map data is not permanent. The FAA updates the maps on a 56-day cycle aligned with the standard aeronautical chart publication schedule, and each edition carries an effective date.2Federal Aviation Administration. Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Facility Maps A square that read 100 feet last cycle can read zero in the next if traffic patterns around the airport change. Confirm you are looking at the current edition before you trust a ceiling.
A Temporary Flight Restriction can also erase an authorization you already hold. A TFR issued for a presidential visit, wildfire suppression, or a major sporting event overrides any active LAANC approval; a previously cleared flight becomes illegal the moment the restriction takes effect, even if LAANC approved it an hour earlier.7Federal Aviation Administration. Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs) The FAA communicates TFRs through Notices to Air Missions, and you are required to check them before every flight. LAANC apps display active TFRs, but the responsibility to confirm the airspace is clear at launch time is yours. Operating inside an active TFR requires specific permission from the controlling agency listed in the notice, or clearance through the FAA’s expedited Special Governmental Interest process.
What Skipping the Map Can Cost
Flying in controlled airspace without LAANC approval or an active airspace authorization violates federal aviation regulations, and current FAA policy calls for legal action when drone operations endanger the public, breach airspace restrictions, or connect to another crime.8Federal Aviation Administration. FAA Steps Up Drone Enforcement
Civil penalties for individuals can reach $100,000 per violation under the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024, and companies or other non-individual operators face fines up to $1,200,000 per violation.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 49 USC 46301 – General Civil Penalties Part 107 certificate holders also risk suspension or revocation of their remote pilot certificate, and the FAA can still fine an operator who holds no certificate at all.8Federal Aviation Administration. FAA Steps Up Drone Enforcement Against that exposure, opening the facility map and clearing an authorization before takeoff is a small step.