FEIC Thailand would like to inform drone insurance customers of an important update to the CAAT flight request process in Thailand.
This update is only relevant for drone operators who intend to fly in VTD areas or other areas that require additional authorisation through the CAAT UAS Portal. For the purpose of this announcement, a VTD area means an area marked on the map in the CAAT UAS application when submitting a flight plan, where additional approval requirements may apply.
In practical terms this may not affect you – there are no extra restrictions in the popular tourist destinations Phuket, Krabi or Pattaya except around the airports, so once you have completed the drone registration you can submit a flight plan and fly without any extra permission or training requirements in these locations. However areas around Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Koh Samui, Hua Hin and other parts of Thailand may fall in restricted zones and now require additional permission and flight training.
Example of areas marked in the CAAT UAS application map. If your planned flight location falls within one of these marked zones, additional requirements may apply.
Based on the information currently available, if a CAAT account was created on or after 17 May 2026, the operator may be required to complete training with a CAAT-certified academy and upload the training certificate to the CAAT Portal before being able to submit a flight request for a VTD area.
Previously, operators could create a flight plan in the UAS Portal and then provide additional approval documents from the relevant authority where required. Under the current process, the system may prevent a flight request from being created until the training certificate has first been uploaded and approved.
Important: this does not mean that all drone flights in Thailand are newly restricted. The update mainly affects flight requests in areas that already require additional authorisation, including VTD areas. Flights in Green Zone areas are currently understood to continue as normal, without this training requirement at the flight-plan submission stage.
At this stage, CAAT has not yet fully clarified whether operators who complete the required training will still also need separate permission from the relevant authority for each flight in a VTD area. Further clarification from CAAT is expected.
Customers should check their intended flying location carefully in the CAAT UAS Portal before proceeding, as some locations may require additional steps before a flight request can be submitted or approved.
If you want to undertake the drone flight training please see the following to find an approved training organisation:
- List of CAAT Approved Flying Training Organisation (FTO): https://www.caat.or.th/certificates-licenses/training-institute-standards-and-duty-assignments/certification-and-exam-data/ato-and-service-statistic/fto/
- Suggested Academy: Pattaya Drone and Robotics Center – PDRC https://www.pdrc.co.th
FEIC will provide further updates once CAAT releases additional clarification.
