With aerial firefighting resources like airtankers and helicopters flying at very low altitudes (typically just a few hundred feet above ground) they share the same airspace as drones flown by the general public.
Federal, state and local wildland fire management agencies and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) urge members of the public not to fly drones around wildfire as they pose serious risks to firefighter and public safety operations and the effectiveness of wildfire suppression efforts.
When a drone is detected flying over or near a wildfire all airtankers, helicopters, and other aerial firefighting resources may have to be grounded which delays suppression efforts and cause wildfires to become larger. So far this fire year 2025, 18 drone incursions have been reported, with 17 of the reports in California.
“If one flies a drone over a wildfire, air operations could be suspended until the risk of mid-air collision with a drone is resolved. When firefighting aircraft are grounded, fire crews lose access to a valuable resource which can adversely affect the safety and efficiency of the overall firefighting efforts. Unauthorized drone flights pose a serious risk to firefighter and public safety and the effectiveness of wildfire suppression operations.” -National Interagency Fire Center
To reduce you chances of fouling wildfire air support never fly a drone near wildlife and use the principles of Know Before You Fly before you launch your drone.
About The National Interagency Fire Center:
The United States federal wildland fire community is a vast network of dedicated public servants, made up of the combined wildland fire workforces of the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service. Together, these agencies manage wildland fire on nearly 700 million acres of federal public land, approximately one-fifth of the total land area in the United States.
NIFC is home to the national wildland fire management programs of these federal agencies, in addition to partners including the National Association of State Foresters, the U.S. Fire Administration, the National Weather Service, and the Department of Defense. These entities work together to provide leadership, policy oversight, and coordination to the nation’s wildland fire programs.
In recent years, the shared mission at NIFC has grown to include all types of fire management, including hazardous fuels treatments, integrated fire and land-use planning, and more. Fire management under this larger and more diverse umbrella aims not only to achieve fire suppression goals, but to accomplish a broad spectrum of natural resource objectives in an efficient, cost-effective manner.
