Do you really need a Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate? If you are earning money or want to earn money with your drone, you are required by the FAA to have your remote pilot airman certificate with a small UAS rating (Part 107). Many companies, such as DroneBase.com and others, are now requiring proof and asking you to submit a copy of your Part 107 before allowing you to do work for them. Without it, these companies will not hire you for projects.

This certification also will teach you how to know what airspace you are flying in and what things you need to consider before flying.

How do I get my Part 107?

  1. Study it yourself
    • Rupprecht Law has a great self-study outline here. This guy knows his stuff. He is a commercial drone attorney and a commercial pilot/flight instructor.
    • The FAA has a study guide here.
  2. Paid Training Options – Here is a listing of a number of highly regarded training sites. For many of us, these are a real help in both learning and understanding this material.
    • Gold Seal UAVGroundShool – You can find them here. They are offering a $20 discount for our readers. Use the code: photofocus20 when you check out. Thanks, Gold Seal!
    • RemotePilot101.com. You will find them here.
    • Drone PIlot Gound School can be found here.
    • Dart Drones has an in-person day-long training here.
    • Drone Launch Academy can be found here.
  3. Take the test – Take your test at an FAA approved Part 107 Testing Center.  When I took the test the cost was $150. You will find a list of them here.

Getting Your Certificate

It can take many months for you to receive your actual Part 107 Card (mine took 3 months) that certifies you are a Part 107 Remote Pilot. While I was waiting, I needed to provide proof of my certification and what I did was go to the FAA site, logged-in under my account and took a screenshot showing that I had passed, but was waiting for the certificate. You can also log in here to the FAA Airmen Search page, type in your name, and search for your name and print out the result.

Other things to consider…Insurance

When you are flying commercially you will want to have insurance, either your own or coverage by the company you are flying for. Some companies that contract cover you with their blanket insurance policies. There are two basic kinds of insurance you will want to investigate, liability and drone specific (also known as hull insurance). Liability insurance deals with liability claims related to the drone and drone specific/hull insurance deals with the drone itself as well as ground equipment (like additional batteries, remote control, lenses, etc.) and payload. An example of hull insurance is if my drone has a motor failure and falls into the river then this is where hull insurance comes into play. Please note that your homeowner’s policy may not cover drone-related issues. Best to check with your agent to find out what is covered.

Please note that I am not an insurance expert. Please do your own investigation based on your needs when choosing insurance for your drone operations.

Fly Safe and Have Fun!

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