Drone shows in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia is one of the largest drone show markets in the region, and by our own observation it has grown for three years running.

What matters more is the bar. A typical programme here starts at well over a thousand drones, and the national record, set on the 94th National Day in September 2024, stands at almost eight thousand drones in the sky at once.

That is worth holding in mind when the budget is worked out. A programme that would stand out in another country can pass unnoticed here.

Most of the activity sits in Riyadh and Jeddah: seasonal city programmes, major sport, national dates, corporate launches.

A project starts with the site, not the script

An outdoor drone show in Saudi Arabia is an aviation operation held as part of an event, and everything that follows is built around specific coordinates.

By the time the approvals begin, these should be settled: the city and the exact site, the coordinates of the take-off point, the boundaries of the flight zone, the layout of the audience area and the perimeter, the date, the time windows for the build, the tests, the rehearsal and the show, the altitude and radius required, the status of the event, and how close the airports and sensitive sites are.

Without these parameters neither the timescale nor the feasibility can be assessed honestly.

How a permit is obtained

The regulator is the General Authority of Civil Aviation, GACA. The regulatory basis is CAR Part 101, Unmanned Aircraft Systems.

An application for a commercial operation is filed through a company legally registered in Saudi Arabia. A foreign company with no local legal presence cannot file one.

What is required: registration of the unmanned aircraft, permission for a commercial operation, coordinates, altitude and the time window, a risk assessment, liability insurance, and documents on the operator and the pilots. At public events, coordination with the regional security authorities is added.

Timescales: a standard operation takes four to six weeks. A state event or a sensitive zone, eight to ten weeks. Near government sites and military zones it stretches further.

DRONICO has its own legal entity in Saudi Arabia, so we can file the application ourselves and carry the approval process for the client. Public liability is insured for two million US dollars, and the cover is worldwide.

The altitude is named before filing

The altitude the show will run at is stated in the application. For an animation of more than four hundred drones a low ceiling is almost always tight, particularly where the design has vertical figures.

The altitude cannot be added on site on the day of the show: it is a parameter of the application. So it is worked out together with the storyboard. First it is clear what has to be in the sky, the altitude follows from that, and only then is the application filed.

How many drones a show actually needs

The number of drones sets what the animation can show, not just how large it looks.

A smaller count gives sparer, graphic images that read well at private and civic events. Portrait compositions begin to convince from 1,000 drones, because a likeness needs proportions rather than a silhouette. Text is the most demanding: allow 15 to 20 drones per letter, and often more.

Our fleet covers shows of up to 9,000 drones, and a programme can run up to 25 minutes.

The perimeter, and the weather on the day

The launch and technical areas are fenced off physically, with only the working crew inside the perimeter and security outside it. Around the drones set out on the ground we keep a buffer of some 50 metres. There are no people where the drones take off, transit, perform or land.

The drones operate in winds up to 12 m/s, in light rain and in temperatures from –10 °C to +50 °C, which covers the summer heat. The final decision to launch is taken on the day, after the weather on site has been assessed.

What else can fly in Saudi Arabia

Drones are not the only thing that can take to the air at an event.

Radio-controlled airships. Their lift comes from non-flammable helium, and speed and altitude are chosen for controllability, so an airship can work directly above the audience, indoors or out. The envelope can be branded in full or built as a figure. In Riyadh we flew a dolphin and a sphere at a SAB bank evening and branded airships at a medical conference.

Custom flying figures. Built around a specific image: in Qatar, glowing phoenixes at the FIFA Arab Cup 2025 opening, whale sharks for Qatar Tourism, and in Kuwait toucans above the stage and the audience. A figure can follow the story of the event or a brand’s own symbol.

Aircraft models. Large radio-controlled aeroplanes, including in a client’s livery.

These combine with drones in one programme: an airship or a figure works close to the audience early in the evening, and the drone show closes it in the sky.

Where we have flown

In Riyadh we worked at the opening of CONEXÃO at the King Fahad Cultural Center, at an energy conference and a medical conference at the Hilton Riyadh, and at a SAB bank evening.

Our outdoor programmes in the region run from a thousand drones. A thousand opened HH The Father Amir’s Prix at Al Shaqab in Doha, glowing phoenixes flew at the FIFA Arab Cup 2025 opening at Al Bayt Stadium, a thousand drones opened the Festival of Health in Abu Dhabi, and in Dubai we worked at the Dubai Frame and at the IBA World Boxing Championships.

Worth reading next

Approvals across the Gulf in full: permits and regulatory requirements for outdoor drone shows in GCC countries. Work indoors in the country: indoor drone shows in Saudi Arabia. Neighbouring markets: outdoor drone shows in the UAE, drone shows in Doha and Qatar. How a show is produced from brief to launch: outdoor drone shows. Safety above people: safety of outdoor drone shows in public spaces. Airships and one-off figures: radio-controlled airships, custom flying objects.

Where to start

Tell us where and when the event takes place and what it marks: an anniversary, an opening, a national date, a product launch. The occasion shapes the script and the size of the programme. From the site and the date we work out how long the approvals will take. That is enough for us to come back with a timeline and a price.