As a form of Chinese traditional culture, sky lanterns are set off by residents in inland China and Taiwan during festive seasons in ceremonies to pray for luck. Some commercial organizations have even applied the sky lanterns as an advertising channel. In the past, cases about Macao residents setting off sky lanterns in commemorative activities during festivals and holidays have been reported. Due to the fact that a sky lantern can go up to a few hundred metres or even above one kilometre high and is lit with fire, therefore causing threat to aviation safety, in order to ensure that the obstacle clearance environment for aircraft in Macao is protected, the Civil Aviation Authority of Macao SAR (AACM) appeals to the residents that they should not set off sky lanterns. In inland China, quite a number of fire accidents were caused by sky lantern activities. For this reason, many inland cities have amended the regulation that governs the fireworks and firecrackers to include sky lanterns in the scope of prohibition. To better enforce the regulation, the police often reinforce their inspection during festive seasons. Take Zhuhai as an example, to protect the properties and the safety of the residents from sky lantern activities which have become more frequent in recent years, the Zhuhai Government amended the regulation last year to prohibit the manufacture, operation and release of sky lanterns. AACM pointed out that as Macao and Zhuhai are neighbouring cities, the release of sky lanterns in Zhuhai in windy conditions can cause threat to the aircraft in Macao at landings, take-offs and during flight. The amendment of the respective regulation by the Zhuhai Government therefore helps to further enhance aviation safety in both places. In accordance with the present aviation regulations in Macao, Article 6 of Portaria No. 233/95/M of 14 August governs that no one is allowed to release projectiles or objects into the air that can endanger aviation safety including fireworks, in the restricted area surrounding Macau International Airport, without prior permission from AACM. Apart from fireworks, balloons, kites, sky lanterns and so on are within this scope of prohibition. For the purpose of further enhancing aviation safety in Macao, AACM is now studying into the amendment of the regulation to strengthen the scope of prohibition.
