ENR 1 GENERAL RULES AND PROCEDURES

ENR 1.1 GENERAL RULES

ENR 1.1.1 General

The air traffic rules and procedures for Air Navigation Services within Reykjavík FIR/CTA that conform with regulations 770/2010, 787/2010, Annexes 2 and 11 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation and to those portions, applicable to aircraft, of the Procedures for Air
Navigation Services - Rules of the Air and Air Traffic Services, and the Regional Supplementary Procedures applicable to the NAT Region.
See section GEN 3.3 for general information on Air Traffic Services (ATS) Provision.

See section ENR 1.8 for Supplementary Information for Reykjavik CTA published in ICAO Doc 7030.

ENR 1.1.2 Minimum safe altitude

General:

Except when necessary for take-off or landing, or except by permission from The Icelandic Transport Authority, aircraft shall not be flown over the congested areas of cities, towns or settlements or over an open-air assembly of persons, unless at such a height as will permit, in the event of an emergency arising, a landing to be made without undue hazard to persons or property on the surface.
VFR:

Except when necessary for take-off or landing, or except by permission from The Icelandic Transport Authority a VFR flight shall not be flown:
  1. over the congested areas of cities, towns or settlements or over an open-air assembly of persons at a height less than 1 000 ft above the highest obstacle within a radius of 600 m from the aircraft;
  2. elsewhere than as specified in a) above, at a height less than 500 ft above the ground or water.
IFR:

Except when necessary for take-off or landing, or except when specifically authorized by The Icelandic Transport Authority, an IFR flight shall be flown at a level which is not below the minimum flight altitude established on charts in this handbook.

The Icelandic Transport Authority may grant exemptions for flights conducted for special purposes.

ENR 1.1.3 Dropping of objects

Nothing shall be dropped or sprayed from an aircraft in flight except with permission from The Icelandic Transport Authority and as indicated by relevant information, advice or clearance from Isavia ANS.

ENR 1.1.4 Acrobatic flying

No aircraft shall be flown acrobatically except under conditions prescribed in Icelandic regulations and as indicated by relevant information, advice or clearance from Isavia ANS.

ENR 1.1.5 Skydiving

No skydiving shall be performed except under conditions prescribed in Icelandic regulations and as indicated by relevant information, advice or clearance from Isavia ANS.

ENR 1.1.6 Towing and advertising flights

No aircraft or other object shall be towed by an aircraft, except in accordance with an approval from Isavia ANS.

Permission shall be granted only if:
  1. the pilot holds the rating for towing;
  2. the aircraft is equipped with a calibrated barograph for recording altitudes during flight
  3. during the proposed flight not more than three aircraft are flying in formation, in which case a distance of at least 60 m shall be maintained both between the towed object of the preceding aircraft and the following aircraft, as well as between the aircraft;
  4. the legal liability insurance also explicitly covers the towing of objects.
The above applies to the towing of objects for advertising purposes and subpara. 2. does not apply to aerial work of rotor-craft. Towing of gliders does not require permission, as the rating for towing will suffice.

ENR 1.1.7 Times and units of measurement

In aviation Co-ordinated Universal Time (UTC) is used and units of measurement in accordance with the International System of Units (SI).

ENR 1.1.8 Airspace structure

The Icelandic Transport Authority establishes the classification of airspace on the basis of the classification described in ENR 1.4.

Within controlled airspace VFR flights may be prohibited completely or partly by the air traffic services with regard to limitation of space and time if urgently required by the degree of intensity of air traffic subject to air traffic control.

ENR 1.1.9 Prohibited areas and flight restrictions

The Icelandic Transport Authority establishes prohibited and restricted areas, if necessary, for the prevention of danger to public safety or order, especially for the safety of air traffic. The areas concerned are published in the AIP.

ENR 1.1.10 Balloons, kites and unmanned aircraft (drones)

An unmanned free balloon shall not be operated without a permission from The Icelandic Transport Authority. An unmanned free balloon shall be operated in such a manner as to minimize hazards to persons, property or other aircraft and in accordance with the conditions specified in appendix 4 to the Icelandic regulation 770/2010 on flight rules.
EU regulations on the operation of unmanned aircraft (drones) have been implemented in Iceland. Regulation 1360/2024 implements EU regulations 2019/947 and 2019/945 with amendments.
Regulation (EU) 2019/947 allows each country to establish specific rules for drone operations to address areas not covered by the EASA regulation. Regulation 1360/2024 outlines the following restrictions.
It is prohibited to fly unmanned aircraft within 150 meters of sensitive sites such as power plants, substations, Parliament, the Presidential residence, ministries, embassies, police stations, prisons, and hospitals, unless authorized by the property owner or operator.
General rules regarding the protection of property rights, privacy, and personal data apply when flying near residential areas or places where people are present.
Flying unmanned aircraft without permission from airport operators is prohibited on airport premises and within restricted zones around scheduled flight airports. Flying is allowed within restricted zones without specific permission if done below the height of the highest obstacles and within 50 meters of the drone’s flight path.
Maximum caution and safety must be exercised near runways of non-scheduled flight airports.
Drones must always give way to all other air traffic.
Instructions from air traffic services, police, the Icelandic Coast Guard, the Icelandic Transportation Authority, and other authorities must be followed.
Restricted zones and limitations for unmanned aircraft are announced on the Icelandic Transportation Authority website.
https://kort.gis.is/mapview/?app=dronar
A permit from Isavia is required for flying a remotely piloted aircraft (drone or aircraft model) within restricted zones around airports with the exception that flights may be operated below the height of the highest structures in the immediate vicinity of the flight trajectory of the unmanned aircraft.

Application for permission shall be filed on the Keflavik airport website (https://www.kefairport.com/) or the website for other Icelandic aerodromes (https://www.innanlandsflugvellir.is/en).
It is possible to apply for an Operational Authorization for flights in the Specific Category if the operation does not meet the requirements of the Open Category, in accordance with Article 12 of Regulation (EU) 2019/947. Further information and guidance can be found on the ICETRA website ( https://island.is/en/specific-category)

ENR 1.1.11 Microlight operations

Microlight flying is only allowed in accordance with regulation 770/2010 on flight rules and regluation 779/2007 on microlight procedures and the following conditions:
  1. the pilot has visual contact with the ground;
  2. from sunrise to sunset;
  3. flying over cities, other densely populated areas and assemblies of persons is prohibited;
  4. flying so as it will cause danger to people or property is prohibited, dropping or distributing objects or other substances from microlight causing danger to people or property is prohibited;
  5. flying within controlled airspace is only allowed with special approval from the appropriate ATS authority. Flying within 5 NM radius of an aerodrome with ATS service requires coordination with the ATS service at that aerodrome. Information on air traffic service airspace: ENR 2.1.
     
Special procedures for microlight operations around airports are to be found in AD 2.20 for the relevant airport.

ENR 1.1.12 Supersonic flight

Supersonic flight is prohibited within BIRD FIR as follows:
  1. Over land and within 12 NM from the base line of the Icelandic territorial waters, below FL300.
  2. Over sea outside 12 NM, below FL150.

ENR 1.1.13 Formation flights

The Reykjavík OACC is the central coordinating agency of the IFR airspace reservation service.

Agencies planning to use this service must file an APREQ with the Reykjavík OACC via e-mail acc@isavia.is with 24 hours prior notice.
Aircraft shall not be flown in formation except by pre- arrangement among the pilots-in-command of the aircraft taking part in the flight and, for formation flight in controlled airspace, in accordance with the following:
  1. the formation operates as a single aircraft with regard to navigation and position reporting;
  2. separation between aircraft in the flight shall be the responsibility of the flight leader and the pilots-in- command of the other aircraft in the flight and shall include periods of transition when aircraft are manoeuvring to attain their own separation within the formation and during join-up and breakaway; and
  3. a distance not exceeding 0.5 NM laterally and longitudinally and 100 ft vertically from the flight leader shall be maintained by each aircraft.
Flight planning shall be in accordance with AIP ENR 1.8.3.1.3.4   regarding number and type of aircraft.