Germany Enacts Low-Altitude Liberalization Act, Designates 60% of Airspace Below 300 Meters as Free Flight Zones and Launches Heavy Subsidies for Electric Low-Altitude Industry
Author: Backhouse Global Low-Altitude Economic Network
In February 2026, the German Federal Parliament officially passed the Low-Altitude Economic Promotion and Airspace Liberalization Act. With unprecedented airspace opening policies and industrial subsidy support, Germany has become the country with the most open low-altitude airspace and the strongest industrial incentive policies in Europe, comprehensively accelerating the industrialization and popularization of Europe’s low-altitude economy. Before the legislation, Germany implemented strict low-altitude airspace control. All flight activities below 300 meters required multi-level approval and pre-report procedures, resulting in high flight thresholds and long compliance cycles, which severely restricted the implementation of civilian low-altitude scenarios such as drone logistics, low-altitude sightseeing, and urban air commuting. The new act designates 60% of Germany’s airspace below 300 meters as free flight zones, allowing qualified enterprises and individuals to carry out compliant low-altitude flights without complex approval or advance filing, greatly simplifying operational procedures and reducing time and compliance costs. Meanwhile, the German government launched a special national-level low-altitude economy R&D subsidy fund, focusing on core tracks including eVTOL complete machine R&D, low-altitude power systems, hydrogen-powered aircraft, intelligent low-altitude management, and drone logistics systems. Qualified enterprises can apply for a maximum R&D subsidy of 50 million euros each to help break core technical bottlenecks and accelerate product iteration. The policy prioritizes three key sectors: urban air taxis, hydrogen-powered low-altitude aircraft, and intelligent drone logistics, focusing on green low-carbon transportation and intelligent low-altitude application innovation, which is highly compatible with Europe’s carbon neutrality goals and smart transportation development plans. As a leading European industrial power, Germany’s low-altitude policy reform has strong regional radiation effects. It will drive other EU countries to gradually liberalize airspace control and increase industrial investment, activate the entire European low-altitude market, and push Europe’s low-altitude economy from pilot exploration to large-scale industrialization. It also provides a global benchmark for market-oriented low-altitude airspace opening and targeted industrial policy support.
