How Part 107 works
Part 107 is short. Most of it fits in Subpart B, the operating rules, and the rest sets up who may fly, who is responsible, and what happens when something goes wrong. Read it once end to end and the exam's Regulations area stops being a memory test and becomes a set of rules you can reason from.
What the rule covers
Part 107 governs the registration, certification and operation of civil small unmanned aircraft systems in the United States. A small unmanned aircraft weighs less than 55 pounds on takeoff, including everything on board or attached. Fifty-five pounds exactly is not small.
The rule does not apply to air carrier operations, to aircraft flown under the limited recreational exception, or to operations conducted under a Section 44807 exemption or under Part 91 with an airworthiness certificate. If you fly for money, for a client, for your own business, or for any purpose that is not purely recreational, you are here.
Who is responsible
Every flight has a remote pilot in command, designated before or during the flight. The RPIC is directly responsible for, and the final authority as to, the operation. That does not change when a client is on site, when someone else owns the aircraft, or when a friend is on the sticks.
A person without a certificate may manipulate the controls only under the direct supervision of an RPIC who can take immediate control of the aircraft. Immediate means you are right there and could take the controller now, not that you are reachable by phone.
What you must be able to show
Section 107.7 requires the RPIC to carry the remote pilot certificate and identification, readily accessible, and present them on request to the FAA, the NTSB, the TSA, or any federal, state or local law enforcement officer. Records required by the regulations go to the FAA on request. The same section lets the FAA, and only the FAA, test or inspect the aircraft, the crew and the system to check compliance.
When a flight becomes reportable
Section 107.9 asks for a report to the FAA within 10 calendar days after an operation involving:
- serious injury to any person, or any loss of consciousness, or
- damage to property other than the aircraft, unless the repair cost, or the fair market value if the property is a total loss, is $500 or less.
Damage to your own aircraft is not on the list. A cracked arm and a bent gimbal do not trigger a report; a scratched car with a $650 estimate does.
Safety, emergencies and hazards
Before flight the aircraft must be in a condition for safe operation, and the flight must stop if continuing would no longer be safe. Nothing in Part 107 requires an airworthiness certificate or a mechanic's sign-off; the judgment is yours, and so is the responsibility.
In an in-flight emergency requiring immediate action, the RPIC may deviate from any rule in Part 107 to the extent necessary to meet it. The FAA may ask for a written report afterwards. This is a narrow door for real emergencies, not a general excuse.
Careless or reckless operation is prohibited, and so is dropping an object in a way that creates an undue hazard to persons or property. Note the test the rule applies: a hazard test, not a ban. Dropping a rope to a crew on a closed roof is different from dropping it over a sidewalk.