Joint Viking: Restrictions for drones and civilian flights

• This information applies to civilian actors. For military participating at the exericse, other rules apply. See this page for more information.

In connection with the exercise, restrictions are introduced for unmanned aerial vehicles and civilian flights. The restrictions apply to large parts of Troms County, as well as a small part of Nordland County. This is to ensure flight safety during the exercise and to avoid unfortunate situations involving drones, among other things.

Maps of the areas where restrictions apply can be found on this page at Avinor.

Note that flights with all types of civilian drones in these areas must be approved by the Norwegian Joint Air Operations Centre (JAOC) at least 72 hours before the flight starts. Only flights with a special societal benefit can be considered for approval. See below for how to apply.

The restriction areas apply around the clock from 3 March 2025 at 07:00 CET to 14 March at 15:30 CET.

The Norwegian Armed Forces will report all violations of restrictions in Norwegian airspace to the police.

Questions can be sent to the Norwegian Joint Air Operations Centre (JAOC) by email: jaoc@mil.no.

There are exceptions to the restrictions for police, ambulances, fire or search and rescue missions, in addition to other prioritised flights.

This is the restriction area

The restrictions for civilian flights apply in the airspace between Tromsø and Bjerkvik and will apply between 2 March and 15 March 2025. During this period, civilian flights and drone flights are not permitted in the areas described under: AIP AIRAC SUP 01/2025.

Airspace restrictions

All flights in the restriction areas are prohibited when the restriction areas are indicated by NOTAM as activated – unless special permission is granted by the Armed Forces or the Civil Aviation Authority.

The prohibition applies to all aviation, including unmanned aerial vehicles and model aircraft – unless other information follows from NOTAM.

The prohibition does not apply to flights in connection with military, police, ambulance, search and rescue missions, or exercises for such missions.

Violation fee

The Civil Aviation Authority may impose a violation fee pursuant to the Aviation Act § 13a-5 no. 6, for violations of the airspace restrictions in the applicable regulations for Joint Viking.

How to apply for an exemption: Send an application to the Armed Forces by e-mail to jaoc@mil.no. This application must be sent at least 72 hours before the planned flight. The application must include the following:

• Time period: planned start and end of the flight, time in UTC.
• Flight route: description of the planned route, provided in coordinates with LAT/LONG in the format DDMMSS. You can also include known geographical names if this is relevant for the application.
• Vertical limitations: lower and higher altitude provided in feet.
• A sketch of the planned flight area or route.
• Type of aircraft: for example, airplane, helicopter, or UAS (drones).
• Registration number and/or callsign, if available.
• Description of the activity and the reason for the flight.
• Contact information: person/company, operator, phone number we can reach you at.

We cannot guarantee that the application will be granted. The flight must have a certain societal benefit, and there must be no other planned military activity at the same time in the same area. It may be that an officer from the Armed Forces will be present in connection with the flight.