Alaska | 2023 State Drone Commerce Scorecard

Alaska ranks 33rd in its readiness for commercial drone services

Rank: 33 (tied)

Alaska tied with New Hampshire for 33rd place in the 2023 State Drone Commerce Scorecard rankings. The state scored 33 out of 100 possible points in how prepared it is for commercial drone services.

The Six Factors Contributing to the Overall Score

A Score in Gray Indicates a Score Below the Median of All States

0 / 30

Airspace Lease Law
Alaska law does not allow public authorities to lease low-altitude airspace above state and local roads. An airspace lease law would allow state or local officials to create drone highways above these roadways.

0 / 25

Avigation Easement Law
Alaska law does not create an avigation easement, which means drone operators may be subject to nuisance and trespass laws, even if their drones do not disturb people on the ground.

20 / 20

Task Force or Program Office
Alaska has a drone program office in its Department of Transportation and Public Facilities.

10 / 10

Sandbox
The Alaska Center for UAS Integration offers airspace access to drone companies, is affiliated with the state transportation department, and has a prominent, open invitation to drone companies to test their services.

0 / 10

Law Vesting Landowners with Air Rights
Alaska law does not expressly provide air rights to landowners, which raises litigation risk for drone operators.

3 / 5

Jobs Estimate
Alaska is in the middle quintile when it comes to the number of drone-related jobs per 100,000 people.

How Alaska Scored Relative to Its Peers

Commercial drone readiness scores vary across the nation. To give state leaders and residents insight into how their state compares, we have provided the scores of four state peers. In this case, these peers are selected because of their geographic and political similarities. (The top line illustrates the top score in 2023.)

Chart showing how Alaska scored relative to its peers

Alaska scored 33 of out 100 possible points. The top ranked state in 2023 was Arkansas, which scored 90 points.

Chart showing how Alaska scored relative to its peers

Get in Touch With the Author

Brent Skorup regularly briefs policymakers on his research and has appeared as a guest for news outlets like C-SPAN, NPR, CBS News, ABC News, and CNBC Asia.

Dive Deeper

Access the full 2023 report to learn more about the methodology, download the data, and see how the scorecard has changed since last year.