C‑DRONE
Drone flying close to a building facade for inspection

🏢 FACADE INSPECTION · SAINT-MALO (35) · €300–1,200 PER JOB

Drone facade inspection in Saint-Malo

Drone facade inspection documents a building's condition over its full height without a lift platform, rope-access technicians or road closures. Cracks, concrete spalling, loose elements, rebar corrosion, render detachment, tired expansion joints, water ingress: the high-resolution sensor, combined with zoom, records millimetre-scale defects tens of metres up. It is the ideal tool for pre-renovation surveys and the statutory monitoring of high-rise buildings.

The standard deliverable is a report organised by elevation (north, south, east, west) with defects mapped onto rectified photos, supplemented if needed by a georeferenced facade orthophoto usable by your engineering office. Property managers, architects, inspection bodies and local authorities use our surveys to prioritise works and secure perimeters where falling material is a risk.

Free quote — facade inspection in Saint-Malo

Rates

€300–1,200 per job — the range observed on the 2026 French market, including regulatory preparation, flight and delivery. The exact quote depends on the site, the deliverable and the airspace context in Saint-Malo.

Common use cases

The local context in Saint-Malo

Saint-Malo's walled city, rebuilt identically after 1944, raises its ramparts above beaches swept by Europe's largest tides: the Fort National, the Grand Bé where Chateaubriand is buried and the Petit Bé islet emerge at low tide — a unique drone spectacle. Beware: Dinard-Pleurtuit airport (LFRD), across the Rance, extends its CTR over the sector, and the Rance tidal power station is a sensitive EDF facility. In season and during major race starts (the Route du Rhum every four years), crowds demand adapted scenarios.

The leading port of Brittany's north coast (ferries to the Channel Islands and England, fishing, trade), Saint-Malo also lives on thalassotherapy, tourism and agri-food (Roullier). Common missions: tourism and hotel imagery, seafront real estate, port construction monitoring, offshore racing and nautical events.

Applicable regulations

Facades to inspect are almost always in built-up areas: the usual regulatory framework is the specific category (STS-01 scenario, populated-area flight with a class C5 drone) with prior prefectural declaration, the open category over public space (open to professionals since 1 January 2026, no overflight of people, daytime only), or sub-category A1 with a sub-250 g C0 drone for small buildings. The flight is conducted a few metres from the wall, well under the 120 m limit; a ground safety perimeter is marked out when the drone operates above public space, and neighbouring owners' consent is sought when the flight requires crossing their plot. Operator registered on AlphaTango, professional aerial liability insurance and Géoportail drone-map checks are systematic.

Frequently asked questions

Does the drone fully replace an engineering survey?

No: the drone provides the exhaustive, documented visual record; structural interpretation of defects remains the engineer's or architect's job. Our reports are designed to feed directly into their analysis.

Can you inspect a facade on a busy street?

Yes, with a specific-category flight declared to the préfecture and a ground safety perimeter managed by an assistant. We often work early in the morning to minimise disturbance to pedestrians.

How accurate is the photographic survey?

At 5 m from the facade, resolution reaches roughly 1 mm per pixel: microcracks, joint defects and early corrosion are clearly identifiable and measurable on the images.

Can this service be flown anywhere in Saint-Malo?

Almost: CTR de l'aéroport de Dinard-Pleurtuit (LFRD); Usine marémotrice de la Rance (site sensible); Forte affluence de l'intra-muros en saison. Depending on the exact location, the pilot picks the right framework (open or specific category) and files the required declarations — included in the quote.

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