so this happened last weekend and its still bugging me. i was flying my fpv quad at a local city park, nothing crazy just cruising around the open field area away from the playground and stuff. cop comes over and tells me i cant fly there, says its illegal. i asked him why and he kind of fumbled around and mentioned something about FAA rules but couldnt really explain it. i have my part 107 license so i know the federal stuff pretty well, but i didnt want to make a scene so i just packed up. the park doesnt have any posted signs about drones that i saw. can cities just ban drones wherever they want? i feel like i got kicked out for no reason but i also dont want to get into it with local police over this

this is genuinely a gray area and its been argued in courts a few times. technically the FAA has exclusive authority over navigable airspace which would suggest local governments cant regulate flight itself, but courts have allowed cities and municipalities to ban drone takeoff and landing from their property ? so if it's a city-owned park they can technically say no drones even if the federal airspace is fine. whether that cop actually knew that or was just winging it is another story lol. i'd look up if your city has any drone ordinances on the books, a lot of them passed vague ones after 2016 or so and never really publicized them

yeah honestly even with part 107 ive had similar run ins. most cops dont know the difference between FAA rules and local ordinances, they just see a drone and assume it must be illegal somehow. i always carry a printout of the local airspace authorization and any relevant city rules now, not because im obligated to but just becuase it ends the conversation faster. not worth arguing on the spot even if youre 100% right