Part 107 – Laws for Commercial Drone Pilots

Part 107 Background

This section of the Part 107 study guide is going to provide an introduction to the Part 107 regulations. This includes pilot and aircraft requirements as well as general operating rules for Part 107 commercial drone pilots.

In June of 2016, the FAA came out with the Part 107 regulations for flying small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS) commercially. Prior to this, the FAA had provided drone pilots the ability to get a 333 exemption. Although this was a step in the right direction, it wasn’t very efficient and it quickly became clear that this highly manual process was not going to work.

The Part 107 regulations, which were rolled out in June of 2016 were meant to deal with this backlog and have continued to change into a much more automated system allowing drone pilots to get licensed and fly in numerous situations that were previously impossible, unregulated, or possibly just unsafe.

Pilot Requirements

In order to become licensed under Part 107, a pilot must:

Be at least 16 years old.
Pass an initial aeronautical knowledge test at an FAA-approved knowledge testing center.
Be vetted by the Transportation Safety Administration (TSA).

Important note for applicants that already have a traditional or manned pilot’s license: If you already hold a Part 61 pilot’s certificate and have completed a flight review within the past 24 months, you are able to complete your Part 107 training online.

If you are looking to renew your Part 107 license, check out our article on Part 107 license renewal.

Aircraft Requirements

Less than 55 pounds (remember this phrasing because this is a favorite test question)
Must register each drone that weighs more than .55 pounds no matter if you intend to use it recreationally or commercially. Check out our guide on FAA drone registration.

Operating Rules

You must:

Fly in Class G airspace (unless you have authorization to fly in controlled airspace)
Keep the aircraft in sight (visual line-of-sight)
Fly under 400 feet
Fly during the day
Fly at or below 100 mph
Yield right of way to manned aircraft
NOT fly over people
NOT fly from a moving vehicle

Once you have your Part 107 license, you then have the ability to request waivers and/or authorizations regarding each of these requirements. Although this process is undergoing changes at the moment (the introduction of immediate airspace authorizations via the LAANC system), each of these requirements can be waived through a successful application to the FAA.

Part 107 Application Process

The Part 107 application process actually isn’t that bad, but there are a few hoops that you will initially need to jump through. The good news is that once you have your license, renewal is A LOT easier.

Application Process for New Applicants

Schedule an appointment with a Knowledge Testing Center. You will set up your exam through an organization called PSI and they will schedule your exam with a local office that you choose while you are on the phone with them. A list of testing centers is available here.
You must pass the knowledge test.
You will fill out FAA Form 8710-13 using the FAA’s online Integrated Airman Certificate and/or Rating Application system (IACRA).
- This will require you to register on the IACRA system.
  - Login with your username and password
  - Click “Start New Application” follow the prompts accordingly.
After a TSA background check, you will receive a confirmation e-mail, which should include instructions for printing out your temporary pilot certificate.
A permanent remote pilot certificate will be sent via regular mail. It is very legit, and it will look a lot like the pilot’s license you get when you become licensed to fly a manned aircraft.

Renewal of Part 107 License

The application process for someone looking to renew their Part 107 license is pretty simplified. You don’t need to fill out any IACRA forms or get another TSA background check. Another good thing is that the test itself is a bit abbreviated. Instead of 60 questions, you only have to take a test with 40 questions. The information on the test is also abbreviated, where you do not need to know weather or loading & performance information again. Check out our full post here on Part 107 Renewal. You will, however, be required to pay the same $150 fee to take the test again. Who doesn’t love paying to take a test?

Another thing that is different is that upon passing the renewal test, the company providing the test facility will provide you with a piece of paper showing your information (and indicating that you passed) and at least one copy of this paper will be embossed with their seal. It’s really important that you keep this paper safe, because you will not be getting another license. Instead, you will need to show this information along with your original license card if you are ever asked for your Part 107 license. The good news is you should get a second copy of this piece of paper, which you can keep with your drone gear. In addition, I also took a picture of mine and saved it in Evernote so that I’ll always have it.

Cost and Expiration

Knowledge Testing Centers charge $150 to people seeking to take their Part 107 aeronautical knowledge test. A list of testing centers is available here.
You will be required to pass a recurrent aeronautical knowledge test every 24 months in order to keep your remote pilot certificate current. We have a whole article on Part 107 renewal.

Pilot Certificate Requirements

Once you are licensed:

The certificate must be easily accessible by the remote pilot during all UAS operations.
The certificate is valid for two years and all certificate holders must pass a recurrent knowledge test every two years.

Part 107 Flight Operations and Waivers

Operations

This section will deal with the rules for Part 107 operations of your drone and how to get Part 107 waivers. With your Remote Pilot Certification, the rules are as follows:

You CAN:

Fly in Class G airspace without air traffic control (ATC) permission.
Fly without a visual observer.
Fly during the day.
Fly during twilight (30 minutes before official sunset to 30 minutes after sunset local time) if you have appropriate anti-collision lighting. Remember this information, as it is a favorite test question.
Carry an external load if it is securely attached to the UAS and does not adversely affect the flight characteristics of the UAS.
Transport property for compensation or hire, so long as the entire UAS with payload is under 55 pounds.

You CANNOT

Fly in Class B, C, D, and E airspace without ATC permission.
Fly your drone in a reckless manner.
Fly beyond an unaided visual line of sight (VLOS) with the drone.
Fly using a first person viewer, such as goggles, unless you also have a visual observer.
Fly more than one drone at a time.
Fly at night without an FAA waiver.
Fly in visibility of less than three miles from your control station.
Fly beyond 400 feet above ground level unless you are within 400 feet of a structure.
Fly faster than 100 mph.
Fly over anyone who is not directly participating in the drone operations, unless they are either under a covered structure or a non-moving vehicle.
Fly from a moving vehicle unless you are flying over a sparsely populated area.

Waivers and Authorizations Under Part 107

The good news is that although there are a lot of rules on what you can and can’t do under Part 107, the FAA also provides ways to get waivers from those rules. Check out our article on getting Part 107 authorizations and waivers. In fact, when it comes to airspace authorization and waivers, the FAA has teamed up with several private companies to provide waivers services via online applications. The system used is called the LAANC system (because everything in aviation is required to have an acronym). LAANC stands for Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability. It just rolls right off of your tongue, doesn’t it? As you probably know by now, I’m a huge fan of airspace, and their app allows you to get instant approval where the FAA has rolled this system out.

For other types of waivers, you still have to fill out an online application to the FAA through their Drone Zone portal, and approval can still take months. Because waivers aren’t something that you will be tested on, I’m not going to get into the details about how exactly to get them here. Suffice it to say that it can be done. If you want more information, check out our post on the specifics of getting waivers and authorizations.

Other Requirements

You must make your drone available to the FAA for inspection or testing upon request and must provide any associated and required records under the rule. I’ve never been asked for this information (not even by local police), but those are the rules and, honestly, having this information with you would be very helpful in the event that someone has questions about the legality of what you’re doing.
You must report any accident that results in serious injury, loss of consciousness, or property damage of at least $500 to the FAA within 10 days of the accident.

The FAA considers an injury to be a “serious injury” if it qualifies as a Level 3 injury or higher on the Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) of the Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine. The AIS system is an anatomical scoring system that ranks the severity of a given injury and is a standard that is widely used by emergency personnel. I realize this is a bit in the weeds, but as an attorney, I saw this definition and was curious how a “serious injury” was defined. The link above looks like a lot of fun reading. Just kidding!