Drone shows in Oman

Over Muscat the drones put up a company history: the year it began, an oil pump jack, a worker in a hard hat, then a family, then the figure 25 and the line “Today we celebrate”. The guests watched from an open venue by the water, with the city and the mountains lit up behind them.

The Omani procedure is stricter than in the countries next door. The application goes to the Civil Aviation Authority on form AWR 033, with the coordinates and the flight level, the specification of the aircraft, a letter from the applicant, a letter from the host and the insurance. That is only the start. Then come the NOCs, each from its own body: the Royal Oman Police, the National Security Agency, the Royal Air Force of Oman. Put a camera on site and the Ministry of Information is added.

All of it takes four to six weeks, longer with filming. So the site and the altitude are chosen before the papers go in: changing them afterwards means going round again.

A show in a hall runs differently. There the agreement is with the venue itself: the hotel or the concert hall issues an NOC, and with its technical team you work through the flight zone, the distance to the audience and the rehearsal window.

Worth reading next

The flight itself: an outdoor drone show in Muscat. Approvals across the Gulf in full: permits and regulatory requirements for outdoor drone shows in GCC countries. Neighbouring markets: drone shows in Doha and Qatar, drone shows in Saudi Arabia, drone shows in Bahrain. The service: outdoor drone shows.