noob questions about Part 107

SethB · Oct 17, 2021

Chaosrider said:
Ahh, but if I understand correctly, if I register as recreational, I won't then be able to operate it under the Part 107 rules.

Is that right?

Thx,

TCS

To my understanding - yes. Pt.107 missions require your drone to have non-rec registration. Which does require a serial number.

If I recall, the last time I renewed my rec registration it too asked for serials, which was new to me.

Chaosrider · Oct 17, 2021

SethB said:
To my understanding - yes. Pt.107 missions require your drone to have non-rec registration. Which does require a serial number.

If I recall, the last time I renewed my rec registration it too asked for serials, which was new to me.

I've concluded I'm going to register one of my drones as 107. I've got three Mini 2s, but only one of them is a "new out of the box" Mini 2. The others have both been "refreshed", one twice, one once.

I've named the NOOTB drone Phoenix, and that's the one I'll register as 107.

But not today. I'm far too obsessed with my new-found video-editing capability to get the registration done today!

TCS

Rich QR · Oct 18, 2021

Chaosrider said:
Ahh, but if I understand correctly, if I register as recreational, I won't then be able to operate it under the Part 107 rules.

If you register for Part 107, you may also fly that drone under section 44809. Registering this way requires you to provide the drone's serial number, and you get a number that is good for that drone only. So if you have ten drones, you'll have to get ten registration numbers.
Registering for Section 44809 gives you one number which you may use on as many drones as you own. It only allows you to fly them under section 44809, even if you hold a Part 107 license. So you're restricted to flying under the "strictly for recreational purposes" limitation (along with all the other limitations) of section 44809.

When you register under Part 107, you don't have to provide a Part 107 certificate number, and you could actually register a drone that way before you passed the Part 107 test (or maybe after you received a temporary certificate but before you have your permanent certificate in hand). That might save you the cost of re-registering the drone, if you were planning on getting a Part 107 license and registering the drone that way soon anyway.

If you have two drones that you consider "professional", and five drones that you consider "toys", you might decide to register the professional drones under Part 107, and then register the toy drones under section 44809. This wouldn't allow you to perform commercial flights with your toy drones, but it would save you a little bit of money that it would cost to individually register each drone under Part 107. It's your decision; just make sure that every drone you want to fly under Part 107 is registered individually with a Part 107 registration number.

vindibona1 · Oct 18, 2021

@Vic Moss
A few months ago there was an FAA official who did a steaming lecture denoting the separation between commercial and recreational flights and was very clear that recreational footage flown by a non P107 pilot was not legal for future commercial use. I wish I could find a link to that lecture.

However the distinction comes when a P107 pilot flies for recreational purposes there appears to be no restriction to use it commercially in the future.

Vic Moss · Oct 19, 2021

vindibona1 said:
@Vic Moss
A few months ago there was an FAA official who did a steaming lecture denoting the separation between commercial and recreational flights and was very clear that recreational footage flown by a non P107 pilot was not legal for future commercial use. I wish I could find a link to that lecture.

However the distinction comes when a P107 pilot flies for recreational purposes there appears to be no restriction to use it commercially in the future.

I really need a link to that video. Because he is dead wrong. Either that or you misunderstood.

And honestly, if it was an FAA live stream odds are you misunderstood. Because the folks who are allowed to do the live stream FAA webinars are very familiar with how things work. And this aspect of the recreational/non-reacreational distinction has been settled since 2016 when the Media Use memo came out.

Jagerbomb52 · Oct 19, 2021

Vic Moss said:
I really need a link to that video. Because he is dead wrong. Either that or you misunderstood.

And honestly, if it was an FAA live stream odds are you misunderstood. Because the folks who are allowed to do the live stream FAA webinars are very familiar with how things work. And this aspect of the recreational/non-reacreational distinction has been settled since 2016 when the Media Use memo came out.

This was back in 2019, the only one I could find. Not sure if this is the one he was referring to.

Vic Moss · Oct 19, 2021

Agustine said:
This was back in 2019, the only one I could find. Not sure if this is the one he was referring to.

That's Kevin Morris, I can promise you he didn't say that. Kevin writes most of the UAS stuff for the FAA.

I speak with Kevin frequently.

BigAl07 · Oct 19, 2021

SethB said:
I’m a little unsure as to the registration requirement for a sub-250g drone on a Pt. 107 flight.

There are no downsides to registration.

If you register as recreational, your $5 will cover as many drones as you wish.
If you register as non-rec, your $5 will cover one drone.

Either registration allows you to load up your Mini 2 past 250g.

Any UAS flown for non-Recreational use (Part 107) is required to be registered with the FAA regardless of weight.

There is no WEIGHT threshold for Part 107 what so ever

BigAl07 · Oct 19, 2021

Macronaut59 said:
If I understand correctly, Multiple drones use the same registration number. So, why not?

That ONLY applies to Recreational Registration.

With Commercial Registration each aircraft gets a unique Commercial Reg # tied to that aircraft and only that aircraft

vindibona1 · Oct 19, 2021

Agustine said:
This was back in 2019, the only one I could find. Not sure if this is the one he was referring to.

It was similar, but it was live at the time in 2020 (and I hadn't started flying until 2020) and my recollection is that of an older fellow. Maybe someone else remembers. I was kind of startled that he talked about "incidentally turning the camera on"... So I'm pretty sure it wasn't this video that didn't have such shocking statements.

Edit: In fact, it had to be after September of last year as I took and passed my Part 107 on September 1st as I recall and I thought to myself how harsh and restrictive the comments were and didn't seem right though not applying to me.

Jagerbomb52 · Oct 19, 2021

vindibona1 said:
It was similar, but it was live at the time in 2020 (and I hadn't started flying until 2020) and my recollection is that of an older fellow. Maybe someone else remembers. I was kind of startled that he talked about "incidentally turning the camera one"... So I'm pretty sure it wasn't this video that didn't have such shocking statements.

I used to watch a lot of their (FAA) videos as I once was a moderator on a couple of the forums so I thought it best to try and stay informed so I could give accurate info to the forum members. I also visited UAV legal News on facebook groups where @Vic Moss would help me understand the USA rules which he did very well.
What I found over time the FAA seemed to do away with the older videos and started new streaming vids. It was around the time you mentioned that you might have seen that video. Perhaps it got lost in the shuffle.

Chaosrider · Oct 23, 2021

Helpful, thanks

Rich QR said:
If you register for Part 107, you may also fly that drone under section 44809. Registering this way requires you to provide the drone's serial number, and you get a number that is good for that drone only. So if you have ten drones, you'll have to get ten registration numbers.

Registering for Section 44809 gives you one number which you may use on as many drones as you own. It only allows you to fly them under section 44809, even if you hold a Part 107 license. So you're restricted to flying under the "strictly for recreational purposes" limitation (along with all the other limitations) of section 44809.

When you register under Part 107, you don't have to provide a Part 107 certificate number, and you could actually register a drone that way before you passed the Part 107 test (or maybe after you received a temporary certificate but before you have your permanent certificate in hand). That might save you the cost of re-registering the drone, if you were planning on getting a Part 107 license and registering the drone that way soon anyway.

If you have two drones that you consider "professional", and five drones that you consider "toys", you might decide to register the professional drones under Part 107, and then register the toy drones under section 44809. This wouldn't allow you to perform commercial flights with your toy drones, but it would save you a little bit of money that it would cost to individually register each drone under Part 107. It's your decision; just make sure that every drone you want to fly under Part 107 is registered individually with a Part 107 registration number.

Helpful, thanks. I already have my 107, so that's not an issue.

I've got three Mini-2s, and I've decided to register one as a 107 bird, and leave the other two in stealth mode...

;-)

TCS

Bruce Burbank · Nov 1, 2021

Wow. I didn’t know I was opening such a can of worms with the original question.

But thanks to you all for all the info. I’m still practicing, and trying to figure out all the settings. So far it’s been great fun. And I am studying up for my 107. Maybe I take the test this month, maybe next.

vindibona1 · Nov 2, 2021

Bruce Burbank said:
Wow. I didn’t know I was opening such a can of worms with the original question.

But thanks to you all for all the info. I’m still practicing, and trying to figure out all the settings. So far it’s been great fun. And I am studying up for my 107. Maybe I take the test this month, maybe next.

Pro tip (on preparing for the test)…
Use the many practice tests available to test your readiness showing the strengths and weaknesses in your knowledge bank. After taking each practice test make notes of where you answered incorrectly so you know what exactly to bone up on. You will find that many tests have the same questions which often indicate specific answers the FAA is looking for when all the answers appear relatively logical.

Roger.Joys · Dec 11, 2021

Lots of great info here.

My understanding too (consistent with the other post on adding items like s strobe) is that the prop guards from DJI will tip your drone over the .55 threshold.

I'd just register. IMHO. It's only $5.00 and takes any ambiguity out of it.

vindibona1 · Dec 11, 2021

Roger.Joys said:
Lots of great info here.

My understanding too (consistent with the other post on adding items like s strobe) is that the prop guards from DJI will tip your drone over the .55 threshold.

I'd just register. IMHO. It's only $5.00 and takes any ambiguity out of it.

They could, depending on the version you purchase but most will. Here in the US the regulations are still relatively friendly as we don't have to be as accutely aware of drone weight as long as we're willing to spend the $5 and 10 minutes of time to go through registration. BTW... For recreational pilots, you use the same number for all your drones. Part 107 pilots need to register each drone. I don't quite understand the logic in that, but it's no big deal.

Roger.Joys · Dec 11, 2021

vindibona1 said:
They could, depending on the version you purchase but most will. Here in the US the regulations are still relatively friendly as we don't have to be as accutely aware of drone weight as long as we're willing to spend the $5 and 10 minutes of time to go through registration. BTW... For recreational pilots, you use the same number for all your drones. Part 107 pilots need to register each drone. I don't quite understand the logic in that, but it's no big deal.

I saw the registration difference too! I'm studying for the Part 107 myself, caught that difference and now wondering why I made these cool registration labels that I'll only need for a short time

Dbez1 · Dec 11, 2021

Let me get this correct since there seem to be conflicting points of view in this thread…I have a registered Air2 that was registered before I decided to go 107. I’ll be taking my Part 107 test within the next month or so. Do I understand correctly that I will have to reregister my Air2? Thanks for your patience.

Speed · Dec 11, 2021

Dbez1 said:
Let me get this correct since there seem to be conflicting points of view in this thread…I have a registered Air2 that was registered before I decided to go 107. I’ll be taking my Part 107 test within the next month or so. Do I understand correctly that I will have to reregister my Air2? Thanks for your patience.

Yes you will need to reregister it under Part 107 if you plan to fly your Air 2 under the Part 107 umbrella.
If not you will only be able to use your Air 2 for strictly recreational purposes.

Ty Pilot · Dec 11, 2021

Dbez1 said:
Let me get this correct since there seem to be conflicting points of view in this thread…I have a registered Air2 that was registered before I decided to go 107. I’ll be taking my Part 107 test within the next month or so. Do I understand correctly that I will have to reregister my Air2? Thanks for your patience.

If you originally registered your Air2 as 'recreational' it can only be flown recreationally. When you get your 107 certification and want to fly that same Air2 for commercial purposes - yes, you will no need to reregister it as a commercial drone.

Commercial registration - Each drone has a unique number tied to the aircraft's serial number as well as the pilot (PIC)

Recreational registration - A number is tied only to the pilot and is good on any drone they fly - for recreational purposes only.

I would add that once you have a commercial aircraft with it's own unique number - you no longer are required to use the recreational number, even if you fly recreationally with that drone.