Indiana Drone Laws 2026: The Complete Pilot's Guide

Last September, a drone flew somewhere in the woods near Madison, Indiana, every single day for weeks. Sometimes seven flights in a day. The pilot was scouting a 17-point buck that hunters in the area had nicknamed the Nucor Monarch. On the second day of deer season, Rodney Pettit killed the deer. By February 2026, Pettit was on probation, and his cousin Eric was in a pretrial diversion program. The forensic evidence — geo-tagged, timestamped flight logs pulled straight from the drone — was Indiana's first criminal conviction under the state's drone-hunting statute. It will not be the last.

If you fly in Indiana, the rules that apply to your flight sit in three layers. Federal, from the FAA. State, from a stack of statutes the General Assembly has been tightening since 2016. And local — narrower than in some states, but very real in Fort Wayne, parts of Indianapolis, and on Indiana DNR property. A wedding shoot above White River, a corn-field scan in Tippecanoe County, an Indy 500 weekend lap around the Speedway, or a recovery flight for a downed deer in the southern hills all sit inside those same three layers. The guide below walks through all three, with primary-source citations, so you can plan a flight that stays legal from pre-takeoff to landing.

What governs drone flight in Indiana?

Three layers, in this order:

The rest of this article works through each layer in that order.

Federal baseline: what applies everywhere

Before any Indiana rule kicks in, you are bound by FAA rules. Here is the short version.

• Part 107Commercial operation. If you fly for anything that benefits a business — real-estate listings, roof inspections, wedding video, ag imagery, paid social — you need the FAA Remote Pilot Certificate.
• TRUSTNon-commercial flight. Free. Online. Carry the completion certificate when you fly. No license, but yes, still required.
• FAA registrationFive dollars, every drone heavier than 0.55 lb (250 g). The registration number has to be visible on the aircraft.
• Remote IDMandatory March 16, 2024. Standard Remote ID, broadcast module, or FRIA.
• Altitude cap400 feet AGL for most flights.
• Visual Line of SightYou or a visual observer in contact with you — eyes on the drone at all times. Daylight or civil twilight.
• Controlled airspaceLAANC authorization required before launch in Class B, C, D, and surface-E.
• Indiana Class C metrosIndianapolis (IND), South Bend (SBN), Fort Wayne (FWA), and Evansville (EVV) are all Class C.

Everything that follows is what Indiana layers on top.

Indiana state-level drone laws

Privacy and surveillance — IC 35-45-4-5(g) is the one to know

Indiana was an early mover on drone-specific privacy law. The headline statute is Indiana Code § 35-45-4-5(g) — Remote Aerial Voyeurism. A person commits the offense by knowingly or intentionally operating a UAV with the intent to peep, and causing the drone to enter the space above or surrounding the dwelling of another person who is occupying that dwelling, to capture an image, photograph, or recording of the occupant. Base classification is a Class A misdemeanor — up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $5,000. The charge escalates to a Level 6 felony — six months to two and a half years — if the operator has a prior unrelated voyeurism conviction, publishes the captured material, or transmits it to another person. House Enrolled Act 1047, signed by Governor Holcomb on March 12, 2024 and effective July 1, 2024, broadened the underlying definition of "peeping" to include "using a concealed camera with the intent of capturing an intimate image," and extended the statute to AI-generated and digitally altered intimate imagery.

A second statute, IC 35-46-8.5-1, covers unlawful photography, surveillance, and tracking on private property — knowingly placing surveillance equipment or tracking equipment on another person's private property without consent. Class A misdemeanor. Prosecutors typically lean on IC 35-45-4-5 for clean drone-peeping cases and on § 35-46-8.5 when the conduct involves placement of equipment or trackers.

Law-enforcement drone use needs a warrant — IC 35-33-5-9

Indiana law enforcement officers must obtain a search warrant to use a drone to conduct a search, perform surveillance, or obtain a photograph or video of private property without the property owner's consent. The exceptions are narrow — aerial photographs of motor-vehicle accidents on public streets, situations where a warrant would not be required for the same search without a drone, and consent from any affected property owner. Evidence obtained in violation of § 35-33-5-9 is generally inadmissible. This is a police-side statute, not a pilot-facing one, but it explains why Indiana has more developed case law on drone-derived evidence than most of its neighbors.

Hunting and wildlife — IC 14-22-6-16 and the Pettit prosecution

This is the statute that produced Indiana's first criminal drone conviction. Under IC 14-22-6-16, no person may knowingly use a UAV to search for, scout, locate, or detect a wild animal as an aid to taking the animal — either during the open hunting season for that animal or during the fourteen days immediately preceding the opening day. The Pettit cousins outside Madison were the first prosecution, and they will not be the last. Indiana DNR is treating this as a priority, and the flight-log forensic capability the agency demonstrated in that case is now part of its standard playbook.

There is a narrow exception added in March 2024: a drone may be used to recover a legally taken animal that has already been harvested. Infrared technology is allowed for the recovery flight. The catch is that nobody in the recovery party can be actively hunting or carrying hunting implements while the drone is in the air. Get the recovery done, then get back to hunting — not at the same time. Violations can be reported through the DNR Turn In a Poacher line at 1-800-TIP-IDNR.

State parks and DNR property — 312 IAC 8-2-8

Indiana is stricter than most states on state parks. 312 IAC 8-2-8(i), effective January 1, 2018, prohibits operation of any motor-driven airborne device — drones included — at DNR properties except at sites designated for that purpose. The rule reaches state parks, state forests, state recreation areas, nature preserves, fish and wildlife areas, and reservoir properties. Indiana Dunes State Park, Brown County State Park, Turkey Run, Fort Harrison, McCormick's Creek, all of them.

There are three exceptions, each narrow and each requiring advance written permission from the property manager: professional journalists working a piece on natural or cultural resources (must provide FAA-license documentation); university-affiliated researchers with the appropriate DNR research permit; and state, regional, or county tourism agencies (must provide FAA license and proof of insurance). Penalties include civil fines and loss of DNR privileges, enforced by Indiana Conservation Officers.

Critical facilities and the NSWC Crane question

Indiana does not have an Ohio-style or Florida-style statute that lists drone-specific critical-facility offenses. The closest analog is IC 35-46-10-2, critical-infrastructure-facility trespass — a Level 6 felony for knowingly entering the real property of a listed critical infrastructure facility without permission. The fit for drone overflight is contested, since the statute targets entry of "real property" rather than the airspace above it. The cleaner federal-law overlay is 18 U.S.C. § 795, which prohibits photography of vital military installations.

That federal statute matters in Indiana for one reason. Naval Surface Warfare Center Crane occupies a large stretch of Martin County in southwest Indiana — the largest multi-service facility in the Department of Defense for electronic warfare. NSWC Crane is itself a Counter-UAS research site. Authorized test flights happen under specific government authority. Civilian overflight is treated as a serious incursion. Stay clear unless you have something in writing.

Commercial versus recreational operation

Indiana does not require a state-level drone license, registration, or business permit beyond what the FAA already requires. Commercial operators need FAA registration and Part 107. Recreational operators need FAA registration and TRUST. The state's growing ag-application industry adds FAA Part 137 certification for spray work. Indiana DNR enforces the wildlife and state-parks rules; INDOT runs its own UAS program for transportation infrastructure inspection.

Penalties at a glance

Local ordinances to watch in Indiana

Indiana does not preempt local drone rules statewide. Most cities default to federal plus state. Three are worth knowing.

Fort Wayne — § 96.30, a notification ordinance with teeth

Fort Wayne adopted the most concrete municipal drone ordinance in Indiana in 2018. Section 96.30 of the Fort Wayne Municipal Code requires UAS operators to file a flight-notification form with the city before operating in any of the named zones. The zones are spelled out by distance:

• Within 5,500 feet of the Downtown Aerial District.
• Within 2.5 miles of Fort Wayne International Airport.
• Within 5,500 feet of Smith Field.
• Within 2,500 feet of Parkview Randallia, Lutheran, or Dupont hospitals.
• Within 2,500 feet of the Army Reserve facility.
• Anywhere above a public event, within a 500-yard horizontal radius.

The ordinance survived federal-preemption pushback because it is structured as a notice rule, not a permission rule — it does not purport to regulate the airspace. The city publishes the notification form online. If you fly in any of those zones in Fort Wayne, file before you fly.

Indianapolis — Indy Parks first, IMS year-round

Indianapolis's drone-policy footprint is split across municipal-park rules and federal stadium TFRs. Indy Parks — the Indianapolis Department of Parks and Recreation — requires advance authorization for drone use in city park property. That covers Eagle Creek Park, which at roughly 3,900 acres is the largest in the system. White River State Park sits in downtown Indianapolis but is administered separately by the White River State Park Development Commission rather than Indiana DNR.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway maintains a year-round property-level ban on drones across all IMS property — Indy 500 weekend or otherwise. The race itself triggers a federal TFR (see federal section below), but the property ban is independent and continues outside the event window.

South Bend, Evansville, and Carmel

South Bend has no published stand-alone drone ordinance. The active restrictions are federal — South Bend International Airport's Class C airspace and Notre Dame Stadium TFR on home-game Saturdays. Notre Dame itself runs a small authorized fleet for traffic and safety monitoring on game days.

Evansville and Carmel have park-rules-level limits. Carmel's drone rule lives at Carmel City Code § 6-69 (Regulation of Unmanned Aircraft Systems) and requires registration, operator licensure, and approval consistent with state and federal law before operating within a 500-yard horizontal radius of, or anywhere above, a public event. Carmel has also restricted operation in residential areas and around schools without permission. Evansville defaults to park-rule-level restrictions through its Parks Department; check city code or call the parks office before flying.

Federal-law overlays that bite in Indiana

A few federal restrictions matter enough in Indiana to call out specifically.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway race-day TFR. During the Indy 500 and other major race events, the FAA establishes a temporary flight restriction covering a three-nautical-mile radius around the Speedway, from the surface up to 3,000 feet above ground level. The TFR sits on top of the federal stadium-TFR framework under 14 CFR § 99.7 and FDC NOTAM 4/3621, which apply to stadiums seating 30,000 or more during MLB, NFL, NCAA Division I football, and major motor sports. IMS seats approximately 250,000. Violations are pursued as federal civil penalties (up to $30,000) and can be charged criminally under 49 U.S.C. § 46307.

Lucas Oil Stadium (Colts) and Notre Dame Stadium. Both meet the seating threshold for federal stadium TFRs. Plan for a three-nautical-mile, surface-to-3,000-foot exclusion from one hour before kickoff to one hour after the final whistle.

Indiana Dunes National Park. NPS Policy Memorandum 14-05 prohibits drone launch, landing, and operation within the boundary of any National Park unit, including Indiana Dunes. The penalty is a Class B federal misdemeanor — up to six months in jail and a $5,000 fine. The adjacent Indiana Dunes State Park is similarly off-limits under 312 IAC 8-2-8. The two parks share a coastline; neither one is a place to fly recreationally.

Hoosier National Forest. Different posture. The Forest Service has not issued a blanket ban on UAS, so recreational drone use is generally permitted on Hoosier NF land. The two clear exclusions are the Charles C. Deam Wilderness (drones banned as motorized equipment under 36 CFR § 261.18) and any active fire-operations area. Anywhere else in the National Forest, the FAA's standard rules apply.

Where to fly legally in Indiana

Looking for places to fly that do not require an application or notification?

• AMA-recognized club fields listed at modelaircraft.org. Several Indiana clubs welcome guests under a membership-day waiver and provide insurance coverage.
• Hoosier National Forest non-Wilderness areas, subject to FAA rules and any short-term closures.
• Private property with written permission from the owner, outside controlled-airspace rings unless LAANC is approved.
• FAA-Recognized Identification Areas (FRIAs) — Indiana has a short, periodically updated list at faa.gov.
• The B4UFLY app before every flight. It surfaces controlled airspace, active TFRs, NSWC Crane–area restrictions, and short-term closures in real time.

Skip the obvious traps. State parks are off-limits without an exception. Indiana Dunes — state or national — is off-limits. IMS is off-limits year-round. Controlled airspace requires LAANC. And on race-day or any major-event Saturday, treat the federal stadium TFR as if it were drawn in red.

Who enforces drone laws in Indiana?

Federal rules are enforced by the FAA. Civil penalties run into the tens of thousands of dollars for serious violations, and criminal referrals go to the U.S. Attorney. The Pettit prosecution was an Indiana DNR case worked by Indiana Conservation Officers — the same office handles state-park and wildlife enforcement. Indiana State Police, Indianapolis Metropolitan Police, and other municipal departments investigate state criminal offenses like remote aerial voyeurism and unlawful surveillance, with charges filed in county courts. Fort Wayne's police department enforces § 96.30. If a drone has damaged property, injured a person, or invaded privacy, civil liability runs in parallel.

How to fly legally in Indiana — quick checklist

Commercial drone work in Indiana

The industries that most often hire Part 107 pilots in Indiana include manufacturing and logistics, utility and INDOT-corridor infrastructure inspection, agriculture, public safety, and event and motor-sports operations.

How USI helps you fly legally

Knowing the rules is half the work. The other half is the credential — and the path looks different depending on who you are. Three audiences, three doors.

Indiana drone law FAQ