Buk District in the integrated Jeonnam-Gwangju special city signed agreements on 11 November with seven research institutes and companies to test drone services, as it seeks to be named a drone special free zone for the fourth time next year, Drone Magazine reports. In these zones, several flight rules are suspended so that drone services can be tried out.
The partners include the Korea Photonics Technology Institute and ETRI's Honam research division. The district will give administrative support, and the companies and institutes will look for new drone business models while following safety rules.
Buk District was first designated in 2021 and again in 2023 and 2025, and last year extended its test airspace to hills near Seokgok-dong for disaster safety uses. It says the zone has so far produced one registered patent and eight patent applications.
