Requirements and Steps to Becoming a Drone Pilot (Part 1- preparing for the written knowledge test)

There are countless reasons someone might want to get licensed to fly a drone. Maybe just for fun, or for racing, but anyone that wants to fly a drone outside of the limited restrictions of their location or as their job will need to get their drone pilot license, or 'remote pilot license'. To do this, you WILL want to study because just having great hand-eye coordination will not be sufficient to pass the tests. I say tests plural because much like when you get a drivers license, first you must take the written knowledge test to get to the main test later where the hand-eye coordination will be more handy.

For starters, what are the requirements to get licensed as a remote/drone pilot in the USA?:

• Be at least 16 years of age and,
• Be able to read, write, speak and understand English, 
• Be of sound mind and body legally speaking, 
• Pass the initial aeronautical knowledge exam at an F.A.A. approved testing facility

See, it that last step that is going to require studying. They will be testing on a number of subject areas including weather & micro meteorology, drone flight regulations as well as drone laws and FAA regulations, NAS National Airspace Systems and small UAS loading and performance. The written test consist of 60 multiple choice questions in these topics. The MINIMUM passing score requires the student to get at least 42 of the 60 questions, 70% correct within the 2 hours allotted to take the test. Here is how much of the test is in each topic (approximations):

1. Regulations  - 15-25%
2. Airspace and Requirements - 15-25%
3. Weather & Micro meteorology - 11-16%
4. Loading & Performance - 7-11%
5. Operations - 35-45%

There ARE tons of free study guides out there and maybe you have the time (and trust) that each of them were created by well meaning people with all the correct (not to mention current) answers. However, I have learned in life that there is a reason for free vs paid options and usually the free ones are not as inclusive or reliable and you often have to scour dozens to get the big picture so since i don't have tons of time to waste digging through dozens, I suggest books such as these to best prepare someone for the knowledge part. 

Consider the fact that the test itself will cost $150. Sure, if you fail you can retake it 14 days later, but you will have to pay the $150 again too AND the failure has to be reported still when you proceed... I would want to be able to ace it the first time for cost alone!

OK, so you have the study guide, now what... Next you look up the locations you can take the test at. Depending on where you are, you may have multiple options. There are 2 companies that provide the test, CATS and LaserGrade. When looking up facilities that administer the written test, the prefix to their ID code will tell you which company each location is affiliated with. For instance, the prefix 'ABS' indicates CATS while 'LAS'. If the facility you choose is CATS, the number to call to begin the process to schedule your test is 800-947-4228. If it begins with LAS you would call LaserGrade at 800-211-2753. A list of testing centers can be found here (last updated 10/2017).

Another helpful resource can be found at Airmen Certification Standards FAQ(pdf).

Again, this is the preliminary knowledge test. Once you take and pass this test, then you will start preparing for the final step. This part is actually even trickier than you might think. The test prep for the written test will have been tough because with all the study guides out there, you will still encounter questions you could not have studied for. That is why after you pass the knowledge test many people out there suggests that you find a mentor of sorts to help you through preparing for the final test to get certified as a remote/drone pilot. There are schools out there for this but they still seem to hold back a bit so if you can find a flight instructor you can spend some 1 on 1 time with to help you better understand how and what you need to be ready to pass the final test.

From all I have seen in gathering this information, one of the most important things to keep in mind for the written test is to allocate enough time to study before your test. I'm sure you want to take the earliest date to get started ASAP but remember you will wait even longer if you take the test before you are fully prepared and wind up failing. So consider the amount of time you actually have in a day to study and how much you can actually cover in a day. Also think about the fact that some days you will skip due to illness or emergency or just not feeling it, some things you might have to go over several times to really get it and as always, some of the most boring, hard to read much less remember stuff is likely to be the most important and will be needed.

If you haven't already done so, try to connect with others who are also into drones and/or are studying for this license. If nothing else you might make a few new friends but you will probably learn a bit from it so always helpful.

The links in this post are included on our resources page for easy access. More to come in Part 2 of this post regarding the final test for the remote drone pilot license. Follow us for everything drones. Thanks! Happy Flying!