Can you take a drone on a Frontier Airlines Flight? We dig into the Frontier Airlines Drone Policy in this article and answer all of your burning questions about traveling with a drone on Frontier Airlines.
Specifically, readers will learn:
- Can I take a drone on Frontier Airlines?
- What is the Frontier Airlines Drone Policy?
- Does it cost more to bring my drone on a Frontier Airlines flight?
- How many drone batteries can I take on a Frontier Airlines flight?
- And much more, including recommendations on how to fly with your drone
Be sure to check out all of our Airline Drone Policies here and of course, the TSA Policy on Drones here.
Frontier Airlines Drone Policy
Frontier Airlines is the king of discount airfare. It’s not uncommon to find $15 and $20 tickets on a Frontier Flight. With those prices it’s easy to see why Frontier is so popular with budget conscious travelers.
However, as with all good deals, there’s more to the story. Frontier’s ticket prices may be cheap, but they have some creative means of generating revenue through the use of additional fees that can “nickel and dime” passengers
For example, Frontier Airlines charges anywhere from $30 to $60 to carry a bag on a plane. Passengers have to pay extra for seat assignments and drinks cost $3 a pop (water is free).
To be clear, for the highly efficient traveler (who packs light) and doesn’t need a lot of room, comfort or amenities, and is bit budget conscious, Frontier can save you some serious money, but it doesn’t work for everyone.
When flying with a drone on Frontier Airlines, passengers need to understand the Frontier Airlines drone policies to be sure they don’t get caught off guard.
Frontier Airlines does not have an official policy on traveling with a drone. While their special items baggage policies cover a lot of ground (including Lithium Polymer batteries) they do not explicitly address drones on Frontier planes.
That said, numerous passengers have reported successfully traveling with their drone on a Frontier flight when adhering to the battery and baggage policies.
We examine these policies in greater detail in the next sections and address whether you can carry your drone onto a Frontier flight and whether you can check your drone on a Frontier flight.
Frontier Airlines Baggage Policies
In order to understand the Frontier Airline drone rules it’s important to understand the Frontier Airlines Baggage Policies. Here’s a quick overview:
- Frontier charges a fee for your carry-on
- There is a fee for checking bags
- 1 personal item is free
Frontier Airlines charges a fee ranging from $30 to $60 for a carry on bag. Bags must weight less than 35 lbs and be 10″D X 16″W X 24″H or smaller.
Travelers can bring a personal item on the plane for free providing it can fit under the seat in front of you and is 8″D X 18″W X 14″H or smaller.
Frontier Airlines charges a bag fee to check a piece of luggage. This fee can range from $35 to $55 per bag.
Unlike other airlines who do not charge to bring a carry on with you on the plane Frontier is going to ding you. That means depending on how you transport your drone on your Frontier flight you might get charged a fee between $30 and $60.
For example, the popular drone backpack DroneGuard BP250 is 6.69″D x 11.42″W x 18.50″H in size. Technically it’s larger than the Frontier Airlines personal items size, however, it’s possible the gate agent won’t ding you.
It might be safer to use the smaller sized DroneGuard BP200 (pictured below) which is 6.69″D x 9.45″W x 15.75″H in size and much closer (although technically still over the Height limit) to the Frontier Airlines personal item limit.
DroneGuard BP200 (check size & price)
For reference, the carrying case that comes with the popular Travel Drone, DJI Mini, easily qualifies as a personal item as it comes sized: 6.3 x 3.1 x 0.4 inches.
Frontier Airlines Lithium Battery Policies
The next thing to consider when determining how to take your drone on a Frontier Airlines flight is the Frontier Airlines Lithium Battery policy. As readers likely know, most drones use Lithium Polymer batteries (LiPo batteries).
Most airlines place some sort of restriction on the quantity of LiPo batteries passengers can travel with as well as how they are actually brought onto the plane. Unfortunately, there’s a wide degree of variance with airline battery policies. For example, the Alaska policy is much different than the Southwest policy.
Frontier Airline’s LiPo policy is as follows:
- Lithium ion batteries (think scooters) weighing 8 grams or less per battery are allowed
- Lithium metal batteries, weighing 2 grams or less per battery, are allowed on the plane
- There are no additional fees if they are packed within check or carry-on baggage.
- You can check a bag with LiPo batteries, however, no loose batteries are allowed. All batteries must be installed in a device when packed in a checked bag. No apparent limit exists.
- You can carry LiPo batteries on a Frontier flight, however, there is a limit of two loose lithium batteries when stored in zip top plastic bags, the original retail packing, or when the terminals are protected with non-conductive tape or if they are installed in the device
The Frontier Airlines LiPo battery policy is good news for drone travelers because almost all drone batteries will comply with these requirements.
We recommend travelers avoid checking their drone when flying and instead carry it on in a soft case (where you can keep an eye on it). If for some reason you decide to check your drone be sure to get a hard case for your drone and a TSA approved lock. And maybe some drone insurance.
If you must check your drone on a Frontier flight it is pretty easy. Your checked bag must simply adhere to the size and weight restrictions for all checked bags. And, of course, you have to pay the checked baggage fee.
If you are interested in buying a travel drone please check out our detailed analysis of the very best drones for travel.
Frontier Airlines Drone Policy Summarized
Ok, let’s review what we’ve learned. The Frontier Airlines drone policy is straightforward:
- Drones are allowed
- You can check them or carry them on
- You are likely going to have a pay a fee of some sort unless your drone fits into your personal item
- 2 LiPo batteries are allowed
That’s it…pretty easy!
Thanks for stopping by
Thanks for stopping in and learning about the Frontier Airlines Drone Policy. Be sure to check out all of our drone policies. In fact, we’ve covered a ton of other airlines’ drone policies so if you aren’t flying Frontier, we probably have you covered.
We also encourage you to check out our insanely detailed and exhaustive coverage of the best drones for traveling. If you are trying to figure out which drone to buy and take with you on your next adventure, we got you covered.
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