Getting Drone Pilot Qualifications

mithatrone · May 11, 2020

Hi all,

I am new to the Drone world and only have had my Mavic Mini for about 3 weeks and my Mavic Air 2 on the way to me. I so far have about 7 hours of flying time accumulated covering about 66km.
I have already done the online test to get the Operator ID and the Flyer ID as I'm so eager to get flying right away with my MA2 when it arrives.
With the interest I have gained in a very short time, I have started to think in terms of getting higher operator qualifications which would allow you to fly closer to towns and to "Un-involved" people which would give me more freedom in flying.
Could someone kindly shed some light on where to start please? I would like to know what types of skills would I need to develop and how to take tests etc...

Thank you all very much!!!

AndreaBB · May 11, 2020

You will only be able to fly the Mini over uninvolved people starting November. Air 2 is not, and will not be, allowed.

mithatrone · May 11, 2020

AndreaBB said:
starting November. Air 2 is not, and will not be, allowed.

Thank you Andrea for the response. But, I thought MA2 is legal till 2022?

mithatrone · May 11, 2020

What are A1, A2 and A3 and C1, C2, C3 and C4? ?

AndreaBB · May 11, 2020

mithatrone said:
Thank you Andrea for the response. But, I thought MA2 is legal till 2022?

It will be legal even after 2022 but in A3 because it's more than 500gr.
In case you are thinking to get the GVC... it's really expensive and probably doesn't worth for non commercial operations.

AndreaBB · May 11, 2020

mithatrone said:
What are A1, A2 and A3 and C1, C2, C3 and C4? ?

Here's the answer!

mithatrone · May 11, 2020

AndreaBB said:
Here's the answer!

Thanks man!! audio seems to be really quiet on this video. But thank you very much for pointing me in the right direction!

Lastrexking · May 11, 2020

So, it really depends what you want to do. To start with, ANYONE can now use their drone in the UK commercially and sell their footage. There’s no distinction between hobby and ‘professional' flyers from November.

The thing you need qualifications for relates to how close you can fly to people and buildings. Without any qualification you'll need to apply to the drone code;Drone code - Dronesafe

To fly beyond the scope of that, you'll need a minimum qualification of an A2CofC;A2 CofC Drone Course (A2 Certificate of Competency)

That will probably over most people and most popular drones.

Beyond that, you’d need to take the GVC. Much more expensive and technically involved Drone Training Course

Now, some good news and bad news. The Mini will be fine beyond July 2022 - although, would you really want to use it for professional work? It’s very limited to no wind days and camera settings.
Your new Air2 will only be good under any qualification until July 2022, after which it becomes a legacy drone and can only be flown at a distance of 150m to people and buildings as it doesn’t comply with the new requirements for the regulations. Again, that would make most professional work very difficult. There are no drones currently on the market that comply. So, if you want to fly beyond that you’re going to have to invest in another drone in a couple of years.

AndreaBB · May 11, 2020

Lastrexking said:
To fly beyond the scope of that, you'll need a minimum qualification of an A2CofC;A2 CofC Drone Course (A2 Certificate of Competency)

And a drone that fits in a proper class.

Lastrexking said:
Your new Air2 will only be good under any qualification until July 2022, after which it becomes a legacy drone and can only be flown at a distance of 150m to people and buildings as it doesn’t comply with the new requirements for the regulations.

It's legacy even before the 2022 because it can't be used in A1 Transitional, so it falls into A3 Legacy from November.

mithatrone · May 11, 2020

Lastrexking said:
So, it really depends what you want to do. To start with, ANYONE can now use their drone in the UK commercially and sell their footage. There’s no distinction between hobby and ‘professional' flyers from November.

The thing you need qualifications for relates to how close you can fly to people and buildings. Without any qualification you'll need to apply to the drone code;Drone code - Dronesafe

To fly beyond the scope of that, you'll need a minimum qualification of an A2CofC;A2 CofC Drone Course (A2 Certificate of Competency)

That will probably over most people and most popular drones.

Beyond that, you’d need to take the GVC. Much more expensive and technically involved Drone Training Course

Now, some good news and bad news. The Mini will be fine beyond July 2022 - although, would you really want to use it for professional work? It’s very limited to no wind days and camera settings.
Your new Air2 will only be good under any qualification until July 2022, after which it becomes a legacy drone and can only be flown at a distance of 150m to people and buildings as it doesn’t comply with the new requirements for the regulations. Again, that would make most professional work very difficult. There are no drones currently on the market that comply. So, if you want to fly beyond that you’re going to have to invest in another drone in a couple of years.

Wow, that is very descriptive and helpful! thank you very much for the clarifications and the links!!

I personally, in the foreseeable future, don't see me flying drones for any professional work. But, the interest I have gained in a very short period of owning the MM has got me along the lines of thinking to get further qualifications to explore the potential of this technology as a hobby.?

butterflyslicer · May 11, 2020

Practice, practice, practice .
I know some knob who brought a franchise with National Drones Australia.
He brought all the gear but had no idea.
He had/has a Matrice/a mavic pro/spark/and a never used mini .
but never flew them on a regular basis .
He thought I own them therefore I am an expert.
I think he is still sitting behind his desk wondering why the jobs are not coming in.
You have to get your hours up and learn how to fly.
You can not buy experience.

mithatrone · May 11, 2020

AndreaBB said:
It's legacy even before the 2022 because it can't be used in A1 Transitional, so it falls into A3 Legacy from November.

Its the first time I'm hearing this that MA2 is becoming legacy from this November! All this time I thought Its only after July 2022 that it will become legacy.
I wonder where in CAA website can this information be found! ?

Lastrexking · May 11, 2020

AndreaBB said:
And a drone that fits in a proper class.

It's legacy even before the 2022 because it can't be used in A1 Transitional, so it falls into A3 Legacy from November.

But, it can still be flown under an A2CofC until July 2022, so still useable for work.

AndreaBB · May 11, 2020

mithatrone said:
Its the first time I'm hearing this that MA2 is becoming legacy from this November! All this time I thought Its only after July 2022 that it will become legacy.
I wonder where in CAA website can this information be found! [emoji848]

The table I shared is from caa website. If you don’t have the A2 CofC, MA2 can be use only in A3 Legacy, otherwise in A2 Transitional until 2022 and then A3.
DJI has been widely criticised in EU for the weight of this AC.

Lastrexking · May 11, 2020

mithatrone said:
Its the first time I'm hearing this that MA2 is becoming legacy from this November! All this time I thought Its only after July 2022 that it will become legacy.
I wonder where in CAA website can this information be found! ?

The CAP can be downloaded here CAP1789: The EU UAS Regulation Package – Outline

Andy Mac 230 · May 12, 2020

So am I right in thinking that all of our current drones will soon become legacy shortly and therefore only fit for pleasure flying...with no commercial gain. Am I also correct in understanding that the current rules ie 400 max AGL, and the 150 Rules also apply? And finally even if we go and do all of the relevant course as yet there are no drones currently available that will meet the new proposed rules.
Im so confused I don’t know whether to scratch my watch or wind my Rrrrse

Lastrexking · May 12, 2020

Andy Mac 230 said:
So am I right in thinking that all of our current drones will soon become legacy shortly and therefore only fit for pleasure flying...with no commercial gain. Am I also correct in understanding that the current rules ie 400 max AGL, and the 150 Rules also apply? And finally even if we go and do all of the relevant course as yet there are no drones currently available that will meet the new proposed rules.
Im so confused I don’t know whether to scratch my watch or wind my Rrrrse

Spot on.

Andy Mac 230 · May 12, 2020

Is that the conclusion or being confused....lol

Lastrexking · May 12, 2020

Andy Mac 230 said:
Is that the conclusion or being confused....lol

Oh, sorry. The conclusion. ?

mithatrone · May 12, 2020

Lastrexking said:
To fly beyond the scope of that, you'll need a minimum qualification of an A2CofC;A2 CofC Drone Course (A2 Certificate of Competency)

It looks like, in the UK it will cost around £250 to get A2 CofC including learning material and all tests - is that correct?
How much would it be to get GVC then? I have seen it is about £120 more to add Beyond VLOS qualifications to GVC.