Recreational and Commercial Registrations

[Brockrock]

Ok, I have two UAV’s. A Phantom 4 original and a Mavic 2 Pro. I also have a Part 107 rating which I acquired roughly one year after purchasing the P4, but I never used the P4 for commercial purposes. The Mavic however, I could see using commercially, and recently, I registered it as such in case commercial opportunities arise.

So, I now have two distinct and current Registration numbers. My Recreational registration - which is owner specific -
and displayed on both the P4 and Mavic, and my Commercial registration - which is Aircraft specific - for the Mavic.

Obviously, the reason for marked registration is to identify the UAV owner in the event that a UAV is recovered and/or involved in an incident requiring further investigation, and an official inquiry into the registration will result in the FAA knowing whether it is registered for recreational or commercial use.

So, here’s my question. If the majority of ones flying is recreational, it seems imprudent to only have a commercial registration on the UAV, but if the occasional flight may be for commercial purposes, it is necessary to mark the UAV as such. What I want to do is place both registrations on my UAV. Something like COMM - FA1234567 and REC - FA7654321. If my UAV became the focus of an official investigation, I certainly would not want it to begin with the premise that it was only being used commercially.

Thoughts.

 

[msinger]

You should only have one FAA registration number on each drone. For any drones registered under Part 107, you can also fly them for recreational purposes with the same FAA registration number.

 

[brett8883]

Yea they should both have their own 107 registrations #s visible and no recreational registrations in your specific case.

Part 107 registrations are just “registrations” they aren’t “commercial registrations.”

I don’t really know what difference it would make anyway if under investigation at any rate. They are gonna know you are a 107 pilot no matter what so the ignorance excuse is only gonna go so far. You might be better off playing the senile card ?.

 

[Brockrock]

I appreciate the replies. I was pretty much thinking out loud - so to speak - when I wrote this.. But, it was a reasonable thought IMO. In the end, I’ll put only the commercial reg on my Mavic.

 

[DanMan32]

If you are sure you will never fly your P4 commercially (under P107 rules), and your hobby registration is still valid, I can see using the hobby number on it.

I might be concerned though that when going through LAANC, it may always assume 107 for approval which it might otherwise have declined.

 

[Brockrock]

If you are sure you will never fly your P4 commercially (under P107 rules), and your hobby registration is still valid, I can see using the hobby number on it.

I might be concerned though that when going through LAANC, it may always assume 107 for approval which it might otherwise have declined.

Yeah, that's what I have done. Recreational Reg on the P4 and Commercial Reg on the M2P.

Although I did fly the P4 the other day to enjoy a bit of nostalgia, I mainly let the kids fly it now when they want to go 'droning' with me. And, the registration process is so easy, if I did need to do a commercial shoot with the P4 - even while in the field - all I need is my phone, a piece of tape, and a Sharpie, and Boom, good to go.

 

[brett8883]

If you are sure you will never fly your P4 commercially (under P107 rules), and your hobby registration is still valid, I can see using the hobby number on it.

I might be concerned though that when going through LAANC, it may always assume 107 for approval which it might otherwise have declined.

You would have to change your LAANC request to be recreational if you want to fly the P4. Or you could just pay the $5 and not have to ever think about this again.