Here’s a Free Study Guide for Passing the FAA’s Commercial Drone Test

If you want to fly a drone for commercial purposes in the US, you first have to pass the FAA’s Part 107 sUAS test. This free 1 hour 45 minute guide from Tony Northrup is a hugely useful resource for your studies.

Flying for commercial purposes means things like shooting aerial photos for-profit, taking aerial stock footage, filming for a company or even taking footage of a wedding from the skies to mix in with your regular wedding photography.

Even if you are not looking to get certified, this video will teach you invaluable knowledge to help you fly your drone safely and responsibly. You’ll learn about weather, different flight spaces, how to deal with other pilots, and many more topics.

The long video is broken down in to the following topics:

0:51 – Why you want the FAA Part 107 Drone Certification
1:17 – Overview of taking the test
3:07 – Why is none of this relevant to flying a drone
4:35 – Drone laws & numbers
14:2 – Airspace (Class A, B, C, D, etc.)
20:0 – Radio frequencies
23:0 – Pilot’s alphabet/Aviation alphabet
26:3 – Airplane physics (center of gravity, lift, stalling, etc)
32:1 – Sectional charts (those airspace maps)
48:0 – Military Operations Areas (MOAs)
48:5 – Restricted Areas
49:0 – Military Training Routes (MTR/IR/VFR)
50:1 – Latitude & Longitude
55:5 – Airports
56:4 – Runway patterns
58:4 – Runway markings
1:04:08 – Documents
1:04:14 – User Manual
1:04:36 – Maintenance Schedule
1:05:29 – Sectional Charts
1:06:06 – Chart Supplement
1:06:47 – NOTAM (Notices to Airmen)
1:07:53 – METAR (Meteorological Aviation Report)
1:08:12 – TAF (Terminal Aerodrome Forecast)
1:08:15 – Reading a METAR report
1:16:33 – Reading a TAF report
1:23:17 – Weather
1:28:47 – Team & Crew Management
1:29:00 – Visual Observer (VO)
1:29:28 – Remote Pilot in Command (Remote PIC)
1:30:20 – Crew Resource Management (CRM) also at 1:37:06
1:30:52 – Risk (Hyperventilating, Alcohol, Hangovers
1:33:29 – Scanning the Sky
1:34:23 – Personality Traits (Macho, Impulsivity, Invulnerability, Resignation, Anti-authority)
1:37:06 – Crew Resource Management (CRM)
1:39:00 – Testing Tips