Questions for part 107 pilots

John Locke · Jan 16, 2018

The toughest part for me was learning to read charts and know 100% what all the symbols stood for. The whole upside-down wedding cake thing takes a while to absorb. All the other guidlines and logic was quite straightforward. But for the life of me, I see no reason to know what a line on the airport runway means, when I can't get within miles of an airport. That's just ridiculous, but it's in the test. And why do I need to know if I'm convicted of a marijuana violation that I can't obtain a Part 107 for a year? That helps me ZERO to be a good drone pilot, but it's on the test.

Russ Still · Jan 17, 2018

Actually, at a Class G airport, you can get quite close to the runway. It's important to understand the traffic pattern and helicopter routes.

John Locke · Jan 17, 2018

Russ Still said:
Actually, at a Class G airport, you can get quite close to the runway. It's important to understand the traffic pattern and helicopter routes.

The line on the runway noting taxi versus runway has nothing to do with piloting a drone, regardless of the airport class and how close you can get. It's just a stupid question for Part 107 that some moron threw in there for no logical reason. It makes me wonder just how smart the FAA is, as questions like that imply a lack of intelligence.

Russ Still · Jan 17, 2018

I'd have to disagree with you, John. If you are piloting a drone on airport property it's pretty important that you are able to distinguish a runway from a taxiway.

BigAl07 · Jan 17, 2018

John Locke said:
The line on the runway noting taxi versus runway has nothing to do with piloting a drone, regardless of the airport class and how close you can get. It's just a stupid question for Part 107 that some moron threw in there for no logical reason. It makes me wonder just how smart the FAA is, as questions like that imply a lack of intelligence.

John I can't see your point. You do realize that a sUAS pilot can be a lot more than a QuadRotor operator? There are some fairly large Fixed Wing units that operate under Part 107 that do operate on and near airports. Believe it or not some utilize taxi and runways for certain missions. That's why it's important to know these things. We've got to understand that quadrotors are not the end-all in the sUAS world.

RNCotton · Jan 17, 2018

There is a local company here, 901 Drones, that offers a Part 107 prep course. My day job paid for a couple of us to take the class, which included the Prepware book and online practice tests. I'm already comfortable with aviation in general, as well as flying drones (started with RC fixed wing, moved to helis, and then to quads) but having someone guide us through what to expect on the test and making sure we really knew the info and not just how to take the test was a great asset.

After the class, I took practice tests through Prepware until I was scoring over 90 on every test. Then I went and took the real thing. Missed one question. ... dang it ....

John Locke · Jan 17, 2018

Russ Still said:
I'd have to disagree with you, John. If you are piloting a drone on airport property it's pretty important that you are able to distinguish a runway from a taxiway.

Yes, good point, I agree. If you're doing commercial work at the airport, this is good to know.

So what about the marijuana question? How's that relevant?

Russ Still · Jan 17, 2018

If you don't have any marijuana convictions, there is no direct relevance to you. If you did have a conviction, it's good to know the regulation before you apply for a Remote Pilot certificate and break the law. The FAA also wants you to be able to provide valid information to others. If you're going to be a pilot of any type, you should be a subject matter expert.

colinjfischer · Jan 17, 2018

Just throwing it out there - I get that the test is hard and probably something that you've never had to deal with/think about before. I am a commercial pilot too and trust me, this is all good info to know, and is really just the 'bare bones' of the manned world. The FAA tests can be a bear though - a lot of looking at what they're "really" asking vs how the question is worded.

I have my flight instructor cert, so if you have any questions about anything feel free to reach out.

Russ Still · Jan 17, 2018

Howdy, Colin. Where are you based out of?

colinjfischer · Jan 17, 2018

Russ Still said:
Howdy, Colin. Where are you based out of?

KRMN - Stafford Regional Airport in Stafford, VA

Russ Still · Jan 17, 2018

Nice to "meet" you.

John Locke · Jan 17, 2018

Russ Still said:
If you don't have any marijuana convictions, there is no direct relevance to you. If you did have a conviction, it's good to know the regulation before you apply for a Remote Pilot certificate and break the law. The FAA also wants you to be able to provide valid information to others. If you're going to be a pilot of any type, you should be a subject matter expert.

Well, the question is non relevant to safe flying, it's certainly not test worthy IMO, when many other issues are. I hope they refine the test questions with time. I will never be an expert on marijuana, and the question was offensive.

emi326 · Jan 18, 2018

Remotepilot101 was great for me... very modular and easy to digest amounts of info. I was fortunate to get it when it was only $99 and passed the test easily.

Sean Gill · Jan 19, 2018

I mostly used the free online materials and videos. The Tony Northrup one was the best for me. I did pay for a course (can't remember which one... not Gold Seal). It wasn't expensive, but ultimately not all that helpful either.

commercialTRK · Jan 20, 2018

I used sportys.com "Remote Pilot Study Buddy" program. It has a very good user interface and you can filter your practice tests by subject matter. Additionally, their support was great. I had a couple of questions/issues with some mapping questions and they responded with clear explanations.

Extremely reasonably priced; somewhere around $20

AVILLC · Jan 20, 2018

veracious said:
What did you do to prepare for the test?
What was your total cost?

I have been flying drones non-commercially for about 4 years and I would like to add them to our commercial offerings. I get spam emails from companies offering to help getting part 107. Just trying to find out exactly what to expect with this.

Thanks!

I purchased book called " Remote Pilot Test Prep" from Amazon. Link here and signed up for classes with UAV Coach. Best choice out there! I had no knowledge about aviation rules, weather, sectionals, airspace and with UAV Coach I past the test with 95%

Gregory D Moe · Jan 20, 2018

veracious said:
What did you do to prepare for the test?
What was your total cost?

I have been flying drones non-commercially for about 4 years and I would like to add them to our commercial offerings. I get spam emails from companies offering to help getting part 107. Just trying to find out exactly what to expect with this.

Thanks!

I am taking a course from

veracious said:
What did you do to prepare for the test?
What was your total cost?

I have been flying drones non-commercially for about 4 years and I would like to add them to our commercial offerings. I get spam emails from companies offering to help getting part 107. Just trying to find out exactly what to expect with this.

Thanks!

Gold seal course ... Very informative, guarantee passing score ... If you are going for the 107 ... I recommend this course

jbailey · Jan 20, 2018

RemotePilot101.com was very useful for me. After going through their course and scoring well on the final test, I got the 'Remote Pilot Test Prep' mentioned above along with the supplemental - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01K0L2WOA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_m9ZyAbK4A6AN2.

Wilson Lake Drone · Jan 20, 2018

I also was one of those that didn’t spend any $ by studying The FAA Materal plus anything I could find online. YouTube had a lot of material. I passed with a 93.