Public Reminded, "If You Fly, We Can't"

BOISE, IDAHO – Federal, state and local wildland fire management agencies and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) urge members of the public not to fly “Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS)” or drones over or near wildfires. Unauthorized drone flights pose serious risks to firefighter and public safety and hinder wildfire suppression operations.

This season there have been 17 documented instances of unauthorized drone flights over or near wildfires in nine states (Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Utah and Washington). These have resulted in aerial firefighti...