What You Need To Know, When To Apply For A Waiver, and the Part 61 Rule
Once you have passed your FAA Part 107 Test and obtained your Remote Pilot Certificate, there are certain rules that you need to abide by. These include:
- You must register your UAV with the FAA.
- Your drone must weigh less than 55 pounds, including payload.
- You must fly in Class G airspace.
- You must keep your UAV within visual line-of-sight.*
- You must fly at or below 400 feet.*
- You must fly during daylight or civil twilight.*
- You must fly at or under 100 mph.*
- You must yield right of way to manned aircraft.*
- You cannot fly directly over people.*
- You cannot fly from a moving vehicle, unless in a sparsely populated area.*
*These restrictions can be waived if you submit and receive a Part 107 waiver from the FAA.
Operators can also bypass the Class G airspace restriction by applying and receiving approval for special airspace authorization from the FAA.
Certified commercial operators wanting to operate drones exceeding 55lbs must obtain either an airworthiness certificate or an exemption under 49 U.S.C. section 44807 (Special Authority for Certain Unmanned Systems).