Why you should hire a professional drone pilot. Part 1 of 3: Legality

Do you need a Remote Pilots License? Well that depends.

Drones are relatively new in the eyes of the government, specifically the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and, like us, the government is still figuring things out. The FAA has two drone categories: Hobbyist and Commercial. The hobbyist category is exactly that, people who use their drones for their own enjoyment. For example hobbyists may want to film their family reunion or take some nice pictures of a sunset. As soon as somebody profits from the use of a drone, they are considered a commercial operator. The FAA sees anyone who use a drone in “furtherance” of their business as a commercial operator whether that’s, directly selling imagery captured by a drone, or indirectly, helping to sell a product such as real estate with drone imaging. To use a drone in a commercial setting the pilot must take and pass the Part 107 Remote Pilots exam.

The FAA is not in the business to fine pilots; they are more interested in educating, but can and will fine individuals who ignore their warnings up to $33,000 for each infraction committed. The FAA has started to crack down on unlicensed pilots flying in a dangerous manner. A Philadelphia man had almost $182,000 worth of fines levied on him by the FAA for illegally/ dangerously flying his drone.