A TFR is published with an inner ring of 10 nautical miles and an outer ring of 30 nautical miles for a VIP movement. Where are small unmanned aircraft operations typically prohibited?

A VIP movement temporary flight restriction is built in two concentric rings because the protection needed close in differs from what is needed further out. The inner ring is effectively a no-fly zone: essentially all operations are prohibited, unmanned aircraft included, with only narrow exceptions for approved government and security flights. The outer ring is less absolute but still heavily restricted, generally requiring aircraft to be on a filed flight plan in two-way communication with air traffic control and operating under a discrete transponder code — conditions a small unmanned aircraft cannot meet, so the practical effect is prohibition there as well. The critical point for a remote pilot is that these restrictions apply to unmanned aircraft exactly as they do to manned ones, that they are issued at short notice, and that enforcement is vigorous. Checking active restrictions immediately before every flight, not just during planning, is the operational discipline this rule demands.

The inner ring prohibits essentially all operations including unmanned aircraft, while the outer ring imposes restrictions — flight plan, ATC communication and transponder — that a small unmanned aircraft cannot satisfy.

VIP movement temporary flight restrictions use concentric rings, typically 10 and 30 nautical miles. The inner ring prohibits nearly all operations; the outer ring requires a flight plan, ATC communication and a discrete transponder code. Both apply to unmanned aircraft.

Inner Prohibited, Outer Impossible. You cannot fly in the first, and you cannot meet the conditions in the second.

There is no altitude exemption. A small unmanned aircraft at 100 feet AGL inside the inner ring is in violation.

• •Assuming low altitude exempts the operation
• •Believing restrictions apply only to manned aircraft
• •Checking only at the planning stage rather than before launch