Russia to Require ERA-GLONASS for Civilian Drones Over 250 Grams

Starting October 1, 2026, Russia will require civilian drones weighing more than 250 grams to be connected to ERA-GLONASS for their flight plans to be accepted. The Ministry of Transport said connection to the state telematics platform will be a prerequisite for submitting plans to the State Air Traffic Management Corporation.

Since March 1, 2026, affected aircraft have also been required to carry remote identification hardware that reports the drone, its owner, location, altitude and route. ERA-GLONASS collects drone information and relays data including position, altitude, route, identification index and aircraft category to supervisory agencies and bodies authorized to stop flights.

In January, JSC GLONASS chief executive Alexey Raikevich told TASS the system was ready to monitor up to 1 million civilian unmanned vehicles on land, water and in the air. Ministry figures cited in the report show 1,205 registered drones after seven months, with 1,027 users connected: 752 organizations and 278 individuals, including 50 professional drone operators. Deputy industry minister Vasily Shpak said Russia produced 16,398 civilian drones in 2024.

Claims that the system can remotely land drones remain uncertain. The cited decree describes a one-way data feed from drones to monitoring services, rather than a command link. The report says it remains to be seen whether the million-vehicle monitoring claim or a functional stop mechanism is borne out.